


Sweeter Than Fiction

by LittleRose13



Series: I Knew It All Along [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Completed, Friends to Lovers, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Compliant, Hogwarts Fifth Year, M/M, Panic Attacks, Quidditch, Scorpius Malfoy POV, Slow Burn, prefect - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-02
Updated: 2018-11-10
Packaged: 2019-03-12 18:17:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 28
Words: 133,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13552908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleRose13/pseuds/LittleRose13
Summary: Scorpius Malfoy and Albus Potter have decided fifth year is going to be their year; the year everything falls into place for them both and the year they show the bullies they aren’t afraid of them. Scorpius receives a prefect badge and Albus is going to join the Quidditch team, if Scorpius can just convince him that he should try out.It’s going to be the year everything works out for them, and if that means Scorpius keeping his huge crush on his best friend a secret, then that’s just what he’s going to have to do.It’s just a crush. He can get over it well before fifth year is over, can’t he?





	1. Prologue

_Dear Mr Malfoy,_

_Please find enclosed the required spell books for your fifth year of study at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry._

_We look forward to seeing you on September 1st._

_Professor M McGonagall_

Scorpius glanced over the book list but there was nothing on there he hadn’t already read cover to cover. He liked to get a head start on his school reading and, considering he was most comfortable when lost in a book, it really didn’t feel like a chore to him.

Albus would always tease Scorpius lovingly for his bookish ways and Scorpius would smile and go back to whatever he was reading which had caused his best friend to poke fun at him. Because Albus understood that there was nothing Scorpius liked more than getting lost in his books. 

He just didn’t understand exactly _why_.

Because Scorpius had always, always, used his books as an escape. He liked to immerse himself in fictional worlds and submerge himself under history texts and engross himself in the written theory of magic, not because he was no good at practical magic, he just enjoyed reading about it.

Scorpius Malfoy hadn’t exactly had the easiest start to life. He’d barely been allowed contact with any other children until he came to Hogwarts, and had been sickeningly shocked to find that most people _didn’t_ want to be friends with him like he’d originally hoped. The children in his books always had loyal friends by their sides throughout their adventures and Scorpius had assumed he would too. But instead, he was judged for his name and taunted by everyone for a stupid, unfair, untrue rumour which tarred not only him but his beloved mother.

Almost everyone.

Albus Potter hadn’t listened to the rumours. Albus Potter had accepted Scorpius’ offer of sweets and then friendship. Albus Potter was his best friend, his most loyal friend, and really, when all was said and done, his _only_ friend.

Scorpius didn’t have very many people in his life. He missed his mum every single day and, even though he still had Dad around, sometimes it felt like he didn’t. It was true that their relationship had dramatically improved in recent months - it felt more like it did when Scorpius was little - but his dad was still grieving the loss of Astoria, and practically refused to ever mention her at home. Scorpius wished he would. 

So he had Dad, and he had Albus.

However, recently, Scorpius found himself retreating more and more into the fictional world to escape from his loyal best friend. Not because he didn’t want Albus Potter’s friendship, but because he was starting to realise he wanted something _more_.

If he had to pinpoint a moment, Scorpius would silently admit to himself that it was at his mother’s funeral, when he realised that he had feelings for Albus. Of course, he hadn’t understood it at the time. Scorpius had never had a friend before, he thought that was just what friendship felt like. Almost a year of soul-searching (not to mention near death experiences with aforementioned best friend) had lead Scorpius to the only logical conclusion: he was, quite definitely, in love with Albus Potter. 

Unfortunately, there really was no place for Scorpius to be in love with Albus. For a start, it surely was very strange for him to be having feelings like this for _another boy._ None of the boys in Scorpius’ books had ever fallen in love with another boy. 

Secondly, Albus wouldn’t want to be his friend anymore if he knew that Scorpius was having feelings for him. Albus would prefer a friend who was nice and normal and only wanted to be his friend. Scorpius knew he would rather suppress his feelings forever if it meant he could keep Albus’ friendship.

Thirdly, Albus had had just as poor of a start at school as Scorpius had. Taunts of ‘Slytherin Squib’ and constant comparisons to his father had left Albus just as withdrawn as Scorpius. He didn’t need his best friend ruining things as well.

Scorpius had once overheard some girls in their year talking about Albus when they didn’t think anyone was listening. The girls’ general consensus was that Albus was very attractive but there was no chance of him dating any of them because he was ‘cold and unfriendly’. Scorpius had wanted to cry when he heard that and, if he’d been braver, he would have interrupted and put them right. 

Because Albus was the least cold or unfriendly person he knew. Not in the slightest. Albus was warm and cheerful and adorable and approachable and kind and gentle.

He wished everyone else could see Albus the way Scorpius did. 

He wished _Albus_ could see _himself_ the way Scorpius did, instead of putting himself down all the time. It broke Scorpius’ heart when he did. 

But this year, they’d decided. It was going to be _their year._ It was going to be the year they showed the bullies they weren’t afraid of anything they had to say. After being tortured by Voldemort’s daughter, what could any stupid school bullies do? He certainly wasn’t going to let any silly feelings ruin _their year_ for his best friend. 

Malfoy the Platonic, that was him. 

“Scor, what’s that?” Albus’ cheerful voice floated across the breakfast table towards him.

Dad had finally agreed to him inviting Albus round in the holidays and the dark-haired boy had been staying at Malfoy Manor for two days now. 

Scorpius shook his school envelope out onto the table, noticing - as Albus had - that it contained more than the usual book list. A second sheet of parchment fell out followed by a shiny badge. 

“I’m a prefect?” he gasped in astonishment and stared at the silver and green badge which unmistakably displayed a large letter P. 

“I expect they need at least one prefect a year who actually listens during History of Magic.” Albus laughed and Scorpius joined him. 

“Dad?” he called into the next room where his father resided and jumped up from the table, picking the badge up. “Dad, I’m a prefect!” 

Draco Malfoy appeared at the sound of Scorpius’ voice, stopping in the doorway as Scorpius came bounding up to him. He stopped and held the badge out to his father expectantly, who took it and inspected it. 

“Well done Scorpius, I’m very proud,” Draco said warmly, returning the badge with a small smile and patting him on the shoulder. Coming from Scorpius’ father, this was an extreme display of affection. “I was a prefect too, I remember being most put out to discover I wasn’t allowed to take points away.” 

Albus snorted from the table and both Malfoys turned to look at him.

“Sorry,” Albus said, noticing he’d drawn attention to himself. “I was just imagining my dad’s face if you’d been able to take points off him when you were at school together.”

“No, your father got himself into enough trouble without my help.” Draco appraised the young Potter and shared a brief but significant smile with him. For all of his intimidating reputation, Dad really did seem to like and approve of Albus, even if he was a Potter. He had been quick to agree to Albus coming to stay and had even agreed Scorpius could take his best friend up on a return invitation. 

Albus grinned back as Scorpius returned to the breakfast table and Draco joined them too, pouring himself a mug of coffee and opening a nearby copy of _The Daily Prophet_ which he promptly hid behind.

“Who do you reckon the other prefect will be?” Albus mused, finishing a mouthful of toast. “It’s always one boy and one girl, isn’t it?”

Scorpius considered his words and thought about the girls in their year who had been talking about Albus. He hoped it wouldn’t be one of them. “No idea. Do you think Rose is a prefect too?”

Albus scowled slightly and Scorpius remembered his relationship with his cousin wasn’t the best it could be. “Probably. Perfect Prefect Rose.” He said this in a disparaging tone.

“Does that make me Perfect Prefect Scorpius?” Scorpius matched Albus’ infliction. 

Albus’ face relaxed at once into a smile. “Sorry Scor, you know what I mean. I’m really happy for you, mate!”

_Mate. You’re his mate._

“Will you let me use the fancy bathroom though?” Albus took a swig of pumpkin juice and grinned at his best friend. 

Unbidden, in his mind, Scorpius saw an image of himself and Albus _using the bathroom together._

Stop. Malfoy the Platonic. Stop.

“Want to play Quidditch today?” he blurted out randomly to change the subject.“Not properly I don’t mean, as there’s only two of us, unless we can teach the peacocks to play? Of course we couldn’t though! What a silly idea! Although they can fly, which isn’t universally-known-” 

He broke off at the look Albus was giving him. It was a look of amusement and affection which he often sent in Scorpius’ direction when he began rambling as he had just done. It happened a bit too frequently.

“Sorry, I’m rambling. I really must try and stop that this year.” Scorpius stared down at his empty plate. 

“Don’t stop, it’s one of my favourite things about you, your lack of filter. Please continue.” Albus sat back in his chair as if he were watching a performance unfold. 

“Quidditch,” Scorpius said, downing his pumpkin juice in one and jumping to his feet. Albus joined him enthusiastically. 

Despite the warm, sunny weather, there was a slight breeze outside and it played at the front of Albus’ dark hair, lifting it and revealing his bright, green eyes; the same eyes that sometimes appeared in Scorpius’ dreams. He had a broomstick slung casually over his shoulder, a quaffle tucked under his arm, clad in a red and white striped t-shirt and navy shorts.

Albus always seemed to make muggle clothes look effortless when he wore them, even though Scorpius knew he wasn’t overly invested in his own appearance. Scorpius himself, who had been brought up in the strictest of formal dress codes, had taken a few pointers from Albus over the years and now managed to put together some outfits which didn’t consist of wizard’s robes. (It was hardly as if he could ask his dad - who only ever wore smart, dark robes with long sleeves - for fashion advice.) He avoided bright colours and patterns though, feeling it was a safer choice to pick monochrome at all times. 

Due to the heat of the day, Scorpius had selected a short sleeved white shirt which he’d rolled up at the ends so it cut across the top of his bicep. He’d paired it with a black version of Albus’ navy shorts and his best friend had declared his outfit ‘yeah, fine’ when Scorpius had asked him about it. 

Albus kicked his shoes off and mounted his broom, soaring up immediately. Scorpius thought back to their first flying lesson when Albus had barely even managed to summon his broom as he watched his friend fly expertly around the Malfoy Manor Quidditch pitch, the quaffle still tucked under one arm. He was a different person. 

The pitch had been built when Draco was a child, Grandfather Lucius determined for his son to make the Slytherin house team. It had never come up in conversation that Scorpius should try out for the Quidditch team, despite Dad teaching him to play too. The truth was, Scorpius enjoyed flying, but found the addition of all the balls and the rules of the game took away the free feeling of being on his broom. Albus didn’t seem to share this sentiment as he pelted Scorpius with the quaffle over and over again, aiming for the hoops behind him. Scorpius wasn’t terrible, managing to catch it half the time, but he quickly suggested they switch positions. 

Albus laughed freely and openly, something Scorpius rarely saw him do at school, as he saved time and time again each time Scorpius aimed the quaffle at him. _Cold and unfriendly? Hardly,_ thought Scorpius as Albus, yet again, saved his shot. 

He wasn’t sure if it was just because he was a poor Chaser, but Albus was very good. 

“You’re an incredible Keeper!” he exclaimed as they touched down, both exhausted and sweating in the midday heat. “Have you always been that good? I didn’t know. I thought you didn’t like Quidditch all that much.”

“I loved it growing up, adored it in fact. I’ve, er, been practising with Mum and James actually,” he admitted, pushing his hair back with one hand. “They reckon I should try out for the house team but I probably won’t.”

“Well why not?” He focused on the Quidditch conversation and not on the bead of sweat running down the side of Albus’ face. 

“Oh come on! I won’t get on, will I? I’m a Slytherin Squib remember?” He grinned, making fun of himself as he threw his body down on the grass. Scorpius joined him, his broom strewn at his side. 

“I think there’s quite a good chance you _would_ get on. Go on Al, try out! This is going to be _our year_ remember?” 

Albus hesitated for a second then looked over at Scorpius. “I did promise Mum I’d consider trying out.” Scorpius beamed at his best friend. “It’s still a maybe!”

“It’s not a _definitely never_ ,” Scorpius sang, leaning over to poke Albus in the side. Albus poked him back and Scorpius retaliated until they were wrestling playfully on the grass, rolling around on top of each other as they did.

That often happened when Scorpius decided to poke Albus. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading the prologue! I’ve been working on this fic since October so I’m really excited that it’s finally out there :)  
> The next chapter is coming on Monday. Say hi on  tumblr: littlerose13writes


	2. Brother Code

A few weeks later, it was Scorpius’ turn to visit Albus and stay with the Potters. He had been permitted to visit the year before, but only for the day, then he’d had to Floo home. This time, he was staying for a _whole week_.

Scorpius loved his father and he loved the Wiltshire manor he had grown up in, but it did sometimes get a bit _quiet_. This was perfect most of the time when he wanted to curl up with a book, but just occasionally, Scorpius felt himself craving the bustle of a full house. The Potters’ house always contained a stream of people in the summer when the children were home, but Scorpius liked to imagine it was like that all year round, a hub of activity and warmth. 

“Be good, Scorpius,” his father said stiffly from in front of the Potters’ fireplace. 

“Oh, he always is,” Ginny replied, brushing soot from Scorpius’ shoulder. 

Draco watched her fuss over him as he stepped back into the fireplace to return home. “Send my best to Harry, won’t you?” 

“Of course.” Ginny smiled weakly. “You know, Draco, you’re always welcome to stop by for dinner. We would love to have you.”

His father looked uncomfortable at this idea. “Thank you very much,” he said politely, and gave an awkward sort of wave as he span away. 

Ginny placed her hands atop Scorpius’ shoulders and beamed up at him. “Goodness me, you’ve gotten even taller since the last time I saw you. And there was Al thinking he was catching you up.”

Scorpius chuckled and was taken aback when Ginny pulled him into a warm and motherly hug. It had been a long time since Scorpius had been hugged like this and he sensed that Ginny knew that, because she held on just a second longer. 

When Scorpius’ mum had passed away, he knew immediately he wanted Albus at the funeral with him. He needed his best friend more than ever on that day to get through the proceedings. But what he hadn’t counted on was how supportive Ginny would be to him too. She had come to accompany Albus but had ended up being a literal shoulder to cry on when Scorpius found himself standing in the garden on his own, thinking about how he would never see his mother again. 

Ginny released him and smiled warmly. “Congratulations on becoming a prefect.” She picked up his bag and waved her wand so it slowly took itself upstairs. 

“Thankyou, it was a bit of a shock to be honest.” Scorpius stood a bit awkwardly in the kitchen. “Were you a prefect at school?” 

Ginny chuckled and shook her head. “No way, I was far too outspoken, nor was Harry. I’m still not sure how we managed to produce a Head Boy but there you go. We’re blaming Teddy’s influence.”

As if on cue, James Potter came skidding into the kitchen and grabbed a piece of toast from the table, stuffing it into his mouth then spotting Scorpius.

“Mhi Corpius,” he said thickly, through a mouthful of toast.

“Hello,” Scorpius replied politely as James forced the large mouthful of toast down and stuck his head out of the kitchen door.

“AL! YOUR BESTIE’S HERE!” 

Scorpius grinned at being referred to as Al’s ‘bestie’ and Ginny caught his eye and grinned too, but more apologetically than anything. 

“Going to Freddy’s, bye.” James grabbed another slice of toast and headed for the fireplace, reaching for the Floo powder but not before Ginny could snatch it up first.

“Not so fast. Have you changed your bedclothes and hung up your clean washing?”

James looked guilty. “I was going to do it when I got back?” 

“A likely story, go on, upstairs.” 

“Just wait until I’m seventeen, then I can do it with a flick of my wand,” James muttered as he left the kitchen.

“I thought James was already seventeen?”

Ginny shook her head. “Not until Tuesday. He’s rather frustrated about it in case you hadn’t noticed.” 

“It’s great that he’s Head Boy though!”

“Yes, hopefully the responsibility will do him some good,” she mused. 

“Scor!” Albus had finally appeared in the kitchen, with a huge grin on his face, as if he’d been waiting for his best friend to arrive. Scorpius felt himself move closer to where Albus was without even meaning to. 

They hugged in a friendly manner, wrapping their arms around each other for just a second and clapping one another on the back before letting go. It was Scorpius’ well-practised platonic hug. 

“You boys, you’d think you hadn’t seen each other in months,” Ginny sighed. “Have you had breakfast, Scorpius?” 

“Er, yeah I did, at home before I left.” 

“Second breakfast then!” Albus grinned and pulled Scorpius over to the table. “You have to try my grandma’s homemade jam,” he said, gesturing to a jar on the table. 

They munched at toast and the delicious jam companionably for a few peaceful minutes until it was interrupted by Al’s younger sister Lily arriving in the kitchen with a dramatic sigh. This was what Scorpius _loved_ about the Potters; there was always something going on.

“What’s up, Lil?” Albus asked her curiously as she pointedly looked away from where they sat at the table. 

“I’m all _alone_ ,” she complained, plopping herself down at the kitchen table and placing her head atop her folded arms. “Hi, Scorpius.” Her words were muffled by her arms. 

“Hello, Lily,” he said kindly. 

“You’re all alone?” Albus questioned her skeptically. 

“Yes!” she raised her head and sighed again. “James has gone off to Freddy’s, you’ve got Scorpius here, Daddy’s at work, Teddy’s at work, it’s just _me_.” She sniffed.

Ginny scoffed from the sink. “Who am I then? Nearly Headless Nick?” Lily turned to look at her sheepishly. 

“Oh yes, I forgot you, Mum.” 

Ginny sighed and muttered something about only being the person who brought Lily into this world.

“Mum can Miss Emerson come round with Darcy? Please please?” She sat up excitedly in her chair. “I want to show Darcy the book I made for her!” 

Ginny sighed and nodded and Lily sped off again as quickly as she’d arrived. 

“Oh Merlin, we should make ourselves scarce then,” Albus muttered under his breath.

“Why? Who’s Miss Emerson?” Scorpius had no idea what was going on. 

“She’s a teacher at the muggle primary school we all went to, she married a wizard and found out we were all magic too. She used to babysit for us growing up.” 

“You mean she’s a muggle?”

Albus nodded and Scorpius grinned in delight. The idea of being babysat by a muggle growing up was just such a _Potter_ thing to think of. 

“Well, why do we need to avoid her?” Scorpius was keen to meet this elusive, muggle babysitter. He’d not met many muggles before. 

“We don’t need to avoid Miss Emerson, she’s great.” He shook his head. “No, she’s not actually called Miss Emerson anymore, Lily’s just being stupid. She’s Isabella.”

Scorpius gave Albus a confused look and the dark-haired boy realised he still hadn’t explained his earlier comment.

“Scor, do you like babies?” 

Scorpius spluttered - that wasn’t the question he’d been expecting. “Babies? Er, well, I was a baby once.”

“Wow, Scor, I never knew that about you!” Albus stared at him in sarcastic wonder. “Isabella has a daughter, Darcy, she just turned one. Lily is obsessed with her but I never know what to do.” 

Scorpius tried to picture Albus holding a baby and failed. He then tried to picture _himself_ holding a baby and failed even more. 

“Quidditch?” he suggested because he knew Albus liked practising.

“Can’t. We can only go if Mum or Teddy or someone of age comes with us to shrink the brooms down for the walk over, otherwise the muggles might notice us carrying them.” 

The Potters lived in a village in Hampshire that was home to only a few wizarding families and the rest muggles. It’s close proximity to its neighbouring county Wiltshire, where Scorpius lived, meant they could write to each other more than once in a day if they wanted to. It also meant his father wasn’t too reluctant to let Scorpius stay, as he was only fifty miles away. 

At that moment, Lily returned to the kitchen with a large, brightly coloured book in her hand which looked homemade and was singing shrilly. 

“I wish I’d never taught you that spell,” Ginny muttered as she winced at the sound. 

“Let’s go outside.” Albus looked in a hurry to leave and Scorpius was quick to follow Albus outside, where he chose a patch of grass far from the house.

“Sorry, it’s always like that around here. I bet you miss the peace and quiet of your place already,” he sighed, twirling a blade of grass between his fingers.

“I think it’s brilliant. So alive!” Scorpius stared off into the distance, thinking of the silent halls of Malfoy Manor and not missing them one bit. 

“You’re so weird,” Albus told him affectionately. “I like weird.” Scorpius grinned. 

“I’m the weirdest person you know,” Scorpius said with false pride to his voice. “Does that mean you like me the most?” 

It was a long-running joke between them, although every time, Scorpius’ heart swooped when Albus replied “you know I like you more than anyone else.” 

There was a moment of silence as they contentedly lounged on the lawn, Scorpius aware he was much fairer than his best friend and couldn’t stay in the sun as long as Albus could without burning. Albus went brown and freckly and Scorpius went red and blotchy. 

“How was your grandma’s birthday?” Albus asked casually, making conversation.

“It was okay. My Grandfather was unbearable as ever, he’s losing his mind, spouting even more of that pureblood nonsense. Dad says to ignore him when he gets like that but it’s difficult to.” 

Albus nodded in understanding, not that he really could understand what it was like to have a blood-purity-obsessed grandfather. Scorpius was lucky his dad didn’t buy into all of that rubbish. 

“I had to leave the room at one point, you know,” he muttered darkly and Albus sat up to look at him.

“Were you alright? You weren’t on your own were you?” He sounded incredibly concerned and Scorpius melted just a little bit before responding.

“Dad tried his best, it wasn’t too bad. He’s not as good as you are at calming me down though.” Scorpius was reliving the memory of his dad trying to follow the steps Albus had given him if Scorpius started having a panic attack. 

Albus and his father were the only people who knew about how Scorpius was still suffering from their fourth year adventures. It had started with some horrible nightmares, in which he was forced to relive the feeling of being tortured, of the fear of finding out who Delphi was, of the loss and despair he’d felt as the Scorpion King in a world where Albus didn’t exist. Although unpleasant, he’d thought it was probably quite normal to have bad dreams about what happened. Albus admitted he was having them too, and they learnt to recognise when the other hadn’t had a good night so they could take their notes for them in class. 

But for Scorpius, the lasting effects of their fourth year crept beyond his dreams. Most of the time he was fine, but occasionally he had these _moments_ where he felt himself panicking for no reason, where he felt so anxious, his heart would thump out palpitations and he was unable to sit still, where he forgot how to breathe and he was convinced he was going to die. He’d first had one only a few days after they returned from Godric’s Hollow, but it’d happened again a few times since.

The first time it happened, Albus had thought he was going to faint and made him lie down on the floor with his legs raised and count to ten while he breathed in. That was how Scorpius learned he _couldn’t_ breathe in properly. After that, Albus did some research and realised Scorpius had been having a panic attack. Together they came up with a plan of what to do if it ever happened again. Albus knew that, when Scorpius felt that way, he wanted to be away from other people, in a place he was familiar with, and then he liked Albus to give him actions to follow and talk to him about history, or Quidditch, or really anything at all that was mundane and would help Scorpius gain a sense of himself again. 

It had happened a few times at Hogwarts, and never in class thankfully, but each time he had been so grateful he had Albus by his side. Just before they’d parted for the holidays, Albus made him write to his dad and tell him. Then at the train station, Albus had handed his bemused dad a list of instructions about what to do if Scorpius had a panic attack at home. Dad had tried to hide it, but he was clearly very grateful. 

“As long as you’re okay.” Albus still looked concerned as he peered down at Scorpius.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just another thing about me which is weird.” Scorpius sighed. 

“Scor, don’t be silly. Look, if it happens again, I really think you should go to a Healer. I worry about you.” 

He sounded so sweetly concerned, Scorpius copied his actions and sat up too. “That’s what Dad thinks too. I will if it happens again, don’t worry about me though!”

“Can I worry about how pink your cheekbones already are?” Albus grinned and Scorpius instantly reached up to touch his face, feeling the warmth beneath his fingertips. “Inside, before you burn.” 

They returned to the kitchen to find it even fuller than before. Ginny was sat at the kitchen table, chatting to a blonde, very smiley woman who could only have been Isabella. Everything about her just screamed ‘muggle teacher/kindly babysitter’. Behind the table, Lily was holding her homemade book up and reading from it dramatically with several flourishing actions, all for the benefit of a small child who was watching curiously while being held by a tall, young man with pastel-blue hair. He was holding one of the baby’s hands and making her join in with Lily’s actions, bouncing her up and down. He looked up when they entered the kitchen. 

“Hey Al! And this must be the famous Scorpius!” He passed the baby to Lily and came over to the back door to greet them. “Teddy Lupin, nice to finally meet you.” He shook Scorpius’ hand and gave him a warm smile. 

“Scorpius Malfoy, great to meet you too,” he returned Teddy’s smile. He’d heard a lot about Teddy from Albus, who considered him a brother even though they weren’t actually related by blood. He was a metamorphmagus and owned his own hairdressing business in Hogsmeade.  

“I thought you were at work?” Albus asked him curiously. 

“I’m on my lunch break, came by to see this little one.” He gestured behind him to where Lily was twirling around the room holding the baby; Scorpius noticed the hand he pointed with was stained faintly purple. 

“This is Darcy! She’s Isabella’s daughter.” Lily came bounding over with the baby on her hip who squealed in delight. “Is! This is Scorpius, Al’s best friend,” she called over her shoulder to the blonde lady at the table, who gave Scorpius a friendly wave as he grinned at her. 

Scorpius had never been around a baby before. He didn’t have any siblings and just one immediate cousin, his Aunt Daphne’s daughter who was older than Scorpius and went to Ilvermorny in America. Albus, while one of the younger cousins in his huge extended family, had been around babies a lot from the age of two when Lily was born. 

Baby Darcy stared at Scorpius, as if she were mesmerised by him. He gave a nervous smile and she copied him, not taking her eyes off him for a second. 

“She likes you!” Teddy exclaimed, watching the baby. 

“Can I hold her?” Scorpius asked curiously. There was something really quite cute about a tiny human, especially one who was smiling so angelically at him. 

“Sure.” Lily passed the baby over to Scorpius who picked her up under her arms and sat her on his hip just like Lily and Teddy had done. She sat very still for a second, evaluating the new person holding onto her, then she started to bounce up and down and squeal delightedly.

“Wow Scor, she _really_ likes you.” Albus looked impressed and Scorpius felt very pleased with himself. He’d never held a baby before but he seemed to be doing a good job. He also noticed that, although Al had been reluctant about interacting with the baby earlier, he was holding onto Darcy’s hand and making funny faces to make her laugh. Scorpius thought babies might be another one of those things Albus was convinced he was no good at when in actual fact he was. 

Darcy reached for Albus and he sighed and groaned a lot, but Scorpius noticed he quickly reached back before Lily could take her instead. He did a poor job of hiding the huge grin on his face as the little girl curled into him and rested her head on his shoulder. It was an adorable sight and Scorpius had to remind himself not to stare. 

“She likes Al best, we’ve never understood why,” Teddy joked with a grin and earned himself a withering look from the dark-haired boy. 

It took a bit of getting used to the first time Scorpius had heard one of Al’s family members tease him like that. After years at school of seeing people like Polly Chapman make snide jabs at his best friend, he had to remind himself that Albus’ siblings were teasing him affectionately and what they were saying came from a place of love. It had probably been the only type of teasing Albus had experienced before he came to Hogwarts; this thought made Scorpius feel a bit sad. 

* * *

The first few days of Scorpius’ stay went by and he quickly got into a routine of how the Potters liked to do things. Harry would always start cooking breakfast and Ginny would take over part way through, during which time, Harry would rush around the house gathering various pieces of paperwork together and muttering to himself. If James emerged still in his pyjamas, he wouldn’t speak to anybody and would stare sleepily out of the window. Other times, he came down fully dressed with his dark red hair brushed and would chat away incessantly. Lily danced around dreamily and liked to sing loudly wherever she went, particularly favouring a band she liked called _One Incantation._

Of course, sharing a room with Albus was nothing new, but he was so much more relaxed when he wasn’t at school. He bantered easily with James (and Teddy who frequently popped by) and rarely sulked or acted grumpy. He was always sweet to Lily and humoured her eccentric nature. He was relaxed around his dad, and allowed his mum to tease him. It was lovely to see what Scorpius would call ‘the real Albus’. 

It was the night before James’ seventeenth birthday and Scorpius was reclined on the camp bed, his nose in his book and waiting for Albus to finish showering before bed. The sound of the water was background noise, until a different sound floated over on top of it.

“ _Same lips red, the same eyes blue, same white shirt, couple more tattoos. It’s not you and it’s not me.”_

Albus was _singing_.

Scorpius had never heard his best friend sing before; it wasn’t something that tended to come up on a day to day basis. But now, here he was, clear as day, singing his heart out in the shower.

“ _We’re not who we used to be, we’re just two ghosts standing in the place of you and me, trying to remember how it feels to have a heartbeat.”_

He was actually a pretty good singer, his deep voice suiting the song he was belting out. Albus loved music and he’d introduced Scorpius to a lot over the years, this wasn’t a song Scorpius recognised though. 

“ _Tongue-tied like we’ve never known, telling those stories we already told, ‘cause we don’t say what we really mean.”_

It was strangely relaxing, listening to Albus singing away as he read the words on the page in front of him. He wondered how he’d never noticed Albus singing in the shower at Hogwarts before. 

This summer, Scorpius had learned Albus was a skilled Keeper, a natural with babies _and_ that he had a decent singing voice. It excited him to find new things out about his best friend. 

Eventually, the singing stopped and so did the sound of the water, and Albus emerged from the ensuite bathroom wrapped in a towel with wet hair. He crossed the room to his chest of drawers and caught Scorpius grinning at him. 

“That was a nice song,” Scorpius said politely. 

Albus’ head jerked up and he looked startled. “You could _hear me_?” 

“Was I not supposed to be able to? Sorry.” Scorpius hurried to apologise at the look on Albus’ face, who had grabbed tightly onto his towel and stalked back into the bathroom.

“I am going to bloody _murder_ James!” he exclaimed from the bathroom and returned holding a small, blue sphere in one hand. 

“What’s that?” Scorpius peered at it, trying not to think about the fact that Albus was still in just his towel. 

“It’s _supposed_ to be a portable, two-way silencing charm, you know for underage wizards like us who can’t always cast them.”

“What would underage wizards need to cast silencing Charms for?” Scorpius wondered aloud then realised when Albus just gave him a look. “Oh! Right, yes. That would be useful, I suppose.” 

“It’s a _Wheezes_ prototype, Uncle Ron gave it to me to test it out. But James has taken it and swapped it for this, its fake.” Albus sat down on the bed, tossing the blue sphere between his two hands. “I can’t believe you could hear me just then!” He covered his face with his hands, groaning in embarrassment.

“If it’s any consolation, you sounded really good.” Scorpius smiled genuinely at Albus, trying to convey that he wasn’t just saying that.

“You’re just saying that,” Albus replied, standing again and going over to his chest of drawers.

“I’m not! What was that you were singing?”

Albus eyed him as he pulled a pair of pyjamas from the drawer. “S’called _Two Ghosts._ I’ll send you it if you want.” 

“Yes please,” Scorpius said. 

Albus’ music had astounded Scorpius when he’d first arrived at Hogwarts, as he had only ever listened to classical opera until that point. But just like his choice in clothes, Albus’ musical preferences had rubbed off on Scorpius too. Although Albus preferred more upbeat tracks where Scorpius favoured slow, more melancholy songs, there were several times where their tastes crossed over and they found something they both liked. 

Albus had a magical music box he used all the time at Hogwarts, and last Christmas he had bought Scorpius one too. He didn’t use his as much as Albus did, because when he was reading he liked silence, but it was one of his most treasured possessions. 

“Don’t tell James please. He’ll be unbearable if he knows you heard me singing.” Albus had pulled the pyjamas on and was rubbing the towel over his wet hair, making it stick up all over the place. 

“Not a word from me.” Scorpius mimed zipping his lips. “He’s seventeen tomorrow though, what couldn’t wait until the morning?”

“I’m going to go and find out,” Albus muttered and he stood up to leave the room. Scorpius shrugged and went back to his book.

Albus returned a few minutes later, a smirk on his face. “That was hilarious, if not a bit scarring.”

“What?” Scorpius sat up straighter at the look of glee on Al’s face. 

“James. Turns out he was in the middle of using the portable silencing charm, he’s got a girl in his room.” They both fell about laughing. “ _Wait_ ‘til Mum finds out, she is going to go _mental_. I don’t even know how he snuck her in? I bet he used the invisibility cloak. Still, impressive. Our dad’s an _Auror_ and he didn’t notice.” 

“I didn’t know James had a girlfriend?” Scorpius wasn’t exactly close friends with James Potter, but his business tended to make its way round Hogwarts rapidly, very different to Albus who liked to keep things private. 

Albus gave him a meaningful look. “Come on, it’s _James_. He doesn’t _do_ girlfriends.” 

“A boyfriend then?” Scorpius asked innocently, but he was scrutinising Albus’ reaction. Just to see. 

“Oh Scor, you are naive sometimes.” Albus grinned. “James doesn’t do anyonefriends, committed relationships aren’t really his thing. Idiot’s gonna end up getting somebody pregnant soon if he’s not careful. I keep telling him.”  

“But he’d have to be having-” Scorpius stopped himself abruptly. “ _Oh_. The portable silencing charm.” 

“Correct. You’re catching on, Scor.”

This thought was almost inconceivable to Scorpius and he hoped Albus was more on his page than James’. His romantic history consisted of harbouring a huge, secret crush on his best friend for two years and a shaky, failed attempt to ask Rose Granger-Weasley out last year. James wasn’t even a seventh year yet and he was already having sex? 

Albus seemed to pick up on Scorpius’ inner monologue from his expression. “Don’t worry, I think it’s mad too. I’ve never even _kissed_ anyone before.”

“Are you not counting your Aunt Hermione then?” Scorpius smirked and Albus threw a pillow at him. 

“Shut up.” The pillow hit the side of Scorpius’ head. “I think I want to wait, y’know. Not for marriage or anything like that, but I want to make sure I’ve definitely found the right person before I ever, you know.”

Malfoy the Platonic nodded in agreement while Scorpius internally screamed and imagined Albus telling somebody they were his ‘right person’. 

“Teddy waited and he and Vic are really happy together,” Albus continued, going to turn the light off and climbing back into bed. 

“You’re so lucky to have brothers you can talk to about this stuff,” Scorpius sighed wistfully into the darkness. 

“Believe me, most of the time I wish James didn’t talk to me about this stuff. He goes into way too much detail.”

Scorpius laughed and rolled over onto his side, hugging the pillow Albus had thrown to him as sleep started to take over. 

* * *

James’ seventeenth birthday was marred slightly by Ginny grounding him for the rest of the month when she inevitably found out about the girl he had snuck into his room a few days beforehand. Scorpius and Albus overhead her giving him a very serious lecture the morning after about respect and responsibility and they exchanged amused looks until the topic turned to a detailed discussion about contraception and they quickly scarpered in bewilderment. 

“He’s mad at me, he thinks I told Mum,” Albus admitted when they were far enough away from the kitchen. 

“You didn’t, did you?” Scorpius was doubtful. 

“Of course not! Brother Code. He wouldn’t have told Mum if _I’d_ snuck somebody in to do _that_.”

At Albus’ words, Scorpius pictured, not for the first time, Albus with a girlfriend. Albus holding hands with a girl around the corridors at school, Albus snuggling up on the sofa in the common room with a girl, Albus sneaking off to snog a girl in secret, maybe not even telling Scorpius where he was going, Albus resting his head on a girl’s shoulder while she stroked his hair lovingly. 

The thought made Scorpius feel a bit sick. 

But then this was going to be _their year._ Albus was going to make the Quidditch team, he was sure of it, and then he’d be noticed by loads of girls who didn’t think he was _cold and unfriendly._ Lots of girls would want to date Albus if they saw him the way Scorpius did. 

“Is Rose coming later?” Scorpius asked without thinking. He’d been focused on the idea of Albus having a girlfriend.

Albus scowled. “Yeah, she will be.” He brightened up a bit. “Actually, the whole Weasley clan will be here. I apologise in advance.” 

Scorpius grinned. “You know I think your family are brilliant.” 

“Brilliantly _mad_. I warn you now, they’re all going to be fascinated that you’re here.” Albus rolled his eyes as James sloped out to join them looking a bit miserable. 

“Mum told me it wasn’t you who told her, Al,” he said, throwing himself down dejectedly. “So sorry about that.” 

“I _told_ you it wasn’t me.” He poked James in the side of the head. “How did she find out?”

“Fuck knows. She’s Mum, she finds out everything.” His voice was muffled because he’d pressed his head into his hands. 

“It was pretty stupid of you James,” Albus said, shaking his head.

“I’ve gotten away with it before,” he said slyly and Scorpius’ eyes widened at this admission. “That time Mum went to Bulgaria for work.” 

“Ah yes, when you only had the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to sneak past.” Albus smirked.

“Please, Dad didn’t even know I was having sex until this summer, he doesn’t notice anything.”

“I wish _I_ didn’t have to notice either. Who was she this time anyway?” Albus questioned.

“Emily Stone, year above, Gryffindor. Not the first time either. She’s got this really cute freckle right on her-”

“We _don’t_ need to know.” 

Seeing James and Albus bounce off each other made Scorpius wonder what it must be like to have a brother. He sometimes felt a bit like he’d missed out on the feeling of having siblings. 

James caught his eye. “Sorry Scorpius, hope I’m not tarnishing your innocent ears with talk of my rampant ways.” 

Scorpius was chuckling but he could hardly deny he was innocent. “No, go ahead.” 

“Right, so this freckle-”

“That’s not what he meant, James!” Albus punched his brother lightly in the side and grinned. “I was in the middle of trying to explain to Scorpius what an experience it’s going to be to meet all the Weasleys tonight.”

“Cracking! You’ll just love it, Scorpius. Al, have you told him about-”

“I was just about to. Okay, so if you’re going to survive the evening, there are a few things you need to know.” Scorpius gulped at the serious expressions Al and James were exchanging and he felt a bit like he was being initiated into a club. 

“Number one: don’t accept _anything_ from Uncle George or Uncle Ron. They like to prey on fresh meat and they don’t get fresher than you mate.” James clapped a hand on his shoulder as Scorpius sat eagerly waiting for the next rule. “Better add Freddy and Roxy to that list too actually.”

“Number two:” Albus took over, “do not, under any circumstances, allow yourself to be in a conversation with our Uncle Percy unless someone else is present to act as your accomplice. If you go it alone, you will end up stuck there for _hours_. In fact, as you’re fairly unknown, you could pretend not to speak English but best to avoid it altogether.” 

Scorpius snorted. He was really enjoying how seriously the Potter boys were delivering these rules. “I have a question.”

“Oh dear, and we’ve barely scratched the surface,” James looked off into the distance. 

“How do I know which Uncle is which?” 

“That’s easy, mate.” Albus held out his hand as if he were counting. He held his thumb up first. “Uncle Ron is the tallest and will never be far from Hermione’s side,” he put his index finger up, “Uncle George always smells faintly of gunpowder and laughs instantly at bad jokes,” his middle finger extended, “Uncle Percy is the only one who wears glasses, probably have a seven-year-old attached to him for most of the evening,” his ring finger, “Uncle Charlie is the freckliest, because he lives in Romania,” finally his whole hand was open, “and Uncle Bill will be the one shooting dirty looks at Teddy all evening whenever he’s with Vic.” 

Scorpius nodded, trying to take this all in. He didn’t even know who ‘Vic’ was. 

“That last one’s a joke by the way, Bill adores Ted. Look for a ponytail and you’ve found Uncle Bill.” James finished for him, looking pleased. 

Scorpius felt overwhelmed with information; part of him wanted to get out a notebook and write this all down. “Are there anymore?”

“Yes, number three: if you’re related to any muggles, our grandad will accost you and ask you weird questions.”

“James, I’m literally a _Malfoy_.” 

“Good point. In which case, he’ll be hellbent on getting you to join his craze.” 

“You’d love that wouldn’t you, Scor?” Albus said and Scorpius nodded. “Number four: if anyone mentions karaoke, or Celestina Warbeck, get as far away from my grandma as you can. Unless you like shaky _Cauldron Full of Hot Strong Love_ renditions.” 

“Number five:” James was really enjoying this, “if you’re not into board games, always look busy in front of Lily. She will use any excuse to get people to play with her because she loves winning and she’ll throw a strop if she loses.” 

“And finally, number six: if my dad is drunk-”

“Which he will be,” James put in.

“-don’t take _anything_ he says seriously. I mean _anything_. His drunk humour is to try and convince those around him of as many ridiculous things as he can and, well, you look a bit gullible, Scor.” 

“That’s fair,” Scorpius rolled his eyes but was grinning too. “Anything else I should know?” 

“Yes, Teddy might propose to Vic-”

“Shut up, James. He’s not going to propose at _your birthday_ when I know for a fact he hasn’t spoken to Uncle Bill about it yet.” 

James winked at Scorpius as if Albus didn’t know what he was talking about. 

* * *

James’ birthday was a lot of fun. Albus was right, his family were all brilliantly mad and he was also right when he said they would be fascinated with him. Everyone was pleasantly amused at the idea of a Malfoy at a Potter’s birthday party but, as they all knew of his friendship with Al, it was all said in good taste. 

Scorpius did manage to remember all of the rules for most of the evening. He avoided Al’s Uncle Percy but was less successful when it came to his grandad and ended up having a fascinating conversation about something called ‘the toob’ which apparently was a muggle train system buried under the streets of London. It sounded made up to Scorpius. 

He approached everything Ron, George, Freddy and Roxy offered him with utmost caution until they realised he’d been tipped off and had a really enjoyable game of _Wizard Guess Who?_ with Lily as it was the only two player game she had and he was the only person who agreed to play with her. He let her win and she kissed him on the cheek. 

When Harry sat Scorpius down and started telling him a story about a time in his fourth year when Scorpius’ father had founded _The Hogwarts Ballet Society,_ Albus dragged him away while Harry roared with laughter. 

Nobody mentioned karaoke, or Celestina Warbeck, and James managed to make it to blowing out the candles on his giant Quaffle cake without Teddy popping the question and stealing his limelight. Him and Al’s cousin Victoire (who Scorpius had had a very interesting conversation with about Healer school) had left the Potters as boyfriend and girlfriend and _not_ fiancés. 

When the evening was winding down, and him and Albus were collapsed on the sofa, exhausted while a film played out and James and Lily chatted over it, Ginny sat beside him and gently placed a hand on his knee.

“I did invite your dad to come tonight, but I understand why he chose not to. We can all be a bit much when we get together. I hope you had a nice time though?” she asked kindly. 

“Oh yes!” Scorpius replied enthusiastically, noticing that Albus had fallen asleep curled up on the end of the sofa. “I had a great time, you guys are brilliant! I wish I had a great big, huge family like that. Thankyou so much for having me to stay, Mrs Potter.”

“You are more than welcome, Scorpius. And please call me Ginny.”

“Thankyou for having me to stay, Ginny,” he repeated with a grin and she smiled. 

“And you know where I am if you ever want to talk, about anything at all. Sometimes it’s easy to keep things inside, for fear of upsetting the person you want to tell, so I wanted you to know the option’s there. I’m only an owl away.” 

Scorpius felt his eyes mist over at her words and he tried to communicate how grateful he was just with his expression. Ginny noticed and looked around sharply at her other children, who weren’t paying any attention. She pulled Scorpius into a one-armed hug. 

“You’re part of the family now, Scorpius,” she whispered then squeezed his shoulder and let go. “We’ll get your dad at one of these one day, mark my words.” Scorpius chuckled weakly as he pictured James and Al explaining ‘the rules’ to his dad. 

All in all, Scorpius went to bed feeling wonderfully content with life and thanking his lucky stars he had a best friend like Albus Potter. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so so much for the feedback to the prologue! I was honestly blown away. The next chapter will be up on Friday :)
> 
> Come and say hello on [ tumblr: littlerose13writes ](https://littlerose13writes.tumblr.com)  
> If anyone’s interested, Miss Emerson and Darcy come from  this fic  :)
> 
>  
> 
> _Lyric credit: Harry Styles, Mitch Rowland, Tyler Johnson, John Henry Ryan, Julian Bunetta_


	3. Double Jointed

Scorpius nervously edged his way up the train, feeling guilty for leaving Albus on his own in the compartment and hoping this wouldn’t take the _whole_ journey. He located the prefects’ carriage and nervously slid the door back, noting that he was one of the first to arrive.

“Hello Scorpius.” The Head Girl, Hufflepuff Juliette Summers, greeted him kindly. James Potter was sat beside her, his own Head Boy badge gleaming brightly. 

“Sup, Scorp.” He said this accompanied with an odd sort of clicking point in Scorpius’ direction. Juliette rolled her eyes at the action and moved to greet some of the other prefects.

“Hello, James,” Scorpius replied a bit awkwardly. 

“First day as a Slytherin prefect,” James said, patting the space beside him. Scorpius hesitantly sat down and nodded uncertainly. “No surprises it wasn’t Al, hey?” He nudged Scorpius’ side.

“I was surprised! Al’s brilliant!” Scorpius replied before he could stop himself. _Malfoy the Platonic, remember?_ “Brilliant at Potions. He’s the best in our class.” 

“‘Tis true, my baby brother does possess some skill with a cauldron,” James said, and Scorpius reminded himself James was joking, and that was just how he was with Albus. 

“He’s a brilliant Keeper too, you know? We practised together at the beginning of the summer.”

“Did you? So did we.” James appraised him for a second and Scorpius felt like they were in strange competition over who knew Albus the best. “I think his growth spurt helped. Do you play?”

“Me? Oh, no, I prefer to just fly by myself,” Scorpius replied honestly. 

By this time, the carriage had filled up with more prefects and Juliette had gotten to her feet as the noise level dropped to near silence. Scorpius spotted that Rose had indeed been made a prefect for Gryffindor. He smiled at her nervously but she wasn’t looking his way. 

“Hi everyone. In case you didn’t know, I’m Juliette and this is-”

“Romeo!” James interrupted dramatically then grinned at Juliette’s annoyed expression. “Sorry Ju, I’ll let you know when that isn’t funny to me anymore. I’m James.” He gave an awkward sort of wave at all of the watching prefects. 

“This is sort of a formality, so you can all meet each other, we’ll have our first proper meeting next week. Until then, your duties for today are to patrol the corridors regularly and report anything to myself or James. After the feast, fifth years, you need to show the new first years of your house to the dormitories. Sixth years, just be around to help if needed. Does everyone know each other?”

She made them take part in an awkward circle of the carriage where each person had to introduce themselves and say a ‘fun fact’. Scorpius felt himself start to worry about what his fun fact could be. The carriage was quite full and seemed airless and he felt his heart beat a little faster.

_Please. Not here. Not now._

“Hi again, I’m James Potter and I’m a seventh year.” James’ voice broke through Scorpius’ feelings of overwhelm as he placed a hand kindly on Scorpius’ shoulder. “And, if he doesn’t mind, I’m going to share my fun fact with Scorpius here. Our fun fact is that we’re both double jointed.” He held out his wand hand and slipped his thumb over the back of his hand, just like Scorpius could do. 

Scorpius stared at him in confusion for a second  before he realised it was his turn. “Yep, I can do that too.” He uncertainly demonstrated. “Er, I’m a fifth year and my name’s Scorpius Malfoy.” He waited for a flinch when he said his surname but none came, instead the person next to him spoke. 

“You okay mate? You looked like you were going to faint just then,” James hissed into his ear and it was such an _Albus_ thing to say that he almost felt like his best friend was sat beside him. He turned to see James’ concerned face and nodded reassuringly. 

“How did you know that about me?” he hissed under his breath as a blonde, Hufflepuff sixth year introduced herself as Freya Everfall. 

“Al told me of course, he talks about you all the time.” James shrugged as if this was the most obvious thing in the world, then turned back to hear the rest of what the Hufflepuff prefect had to say (apparently, she had eight brothers and sisters but she was the oldest). 

_Al talks about you all the time._ Malfoy the Platonic reminded Scorpius that this meant nothing like what he was hoping it meant; Albus was his best friend. His own father would probably comment that Scorpius mentioned his best friend at home a lot, of course he would. Most experiences he’d had involved Albus in some way or another. It was the same thing, wasn’t it? 

The circle continued until it reached Scorpius’ female counterpart for the year. It wasn’t, thankfully, one of the girls who’d called Albus ‘cold and unfriendly’ but who it was didn’t immediately calm Scorpius’ nerves.

“I’m Thea Jordan, I’m a fifth year, and I once played a Quidditch match with a broken arm and scored fifteen goals.” She beamed around the room and James looked impressed.

Thea Jordan was very popular, very pretty, very clever, very good at Quidditch and _very_ unlikely to even know Scorpius’ name. She had sleek, black hair and dark skin with an attractive smattering of freckles which reminded Scorpius of Albus in the summer. Thea Jordan had never been one of the Slytherins who had picked on Scorpius or Albus, probably because they hadn’t even made it onto her radar of importance. 

But now Scorpius would be working with her all year. The thought made him feel apprehensive. 

Rose had started speaking and Scorpius watched her with interest. She had been civil towards him since he catastrophically decided to ask her out last year, given her disinterest for most of the time he’d known her, and her rejection of his request for a date last year. She was a very important part of Scorpius’ plan to make sure it really was _their year_. Because, if he had a crush on Rose, there was no way he could have feelings for his best friend, was there? 

When she’d finished speaking, she looked back at Juliette who told them they were free to leave and not to forget about patrolling the corridors. 

“Hey, Scorpius.” A voice spoke as Scorpius stepped out of the carriage and he realised it was Thea Jordan approaching him, a wide smile on her face. “How great that we’re both prefects!” 

They hadn’t, as Scorpius could recall, ever even spoken before now but Thea’s words implied they had known each other years. “Yes, it is quite great.” 

“Where are you sitting? Shall I come and find you to do patrols together?” 

“Er, yes, good idea. I’m sitting down here, with Albus.” He gestured vaguely in the direction of where he knew Albus was sitting waiting for him.

“Albus Potter, you two are joined at the hip aren’t you?” she observed, but there was no hint of mocking in her voice. “Show me so I know where to find you.”

She followed him enthusiastically and Scorpius worried how Albus would react when he returned with Thea Jordan in tow. She didn’t seem to notice and chatted away to him about her summer as if they were close friends.

The compartment door was a little stiff when he tried to slide it open, but Albus didn’t look up at the noise. He was staring out of the window, and Scorpius noticed he was wearing his earphones and listening to something on his magical music box.

Music to Albus was what reading was to Scorpius. He rarely did anything in silence, often softly playing music in the dorm or, like he was now, tuning out the rest of the world with it playing directly into his head. 

As he got the door open and entered, Albus did look up and pulled the earphones out. They hovered in mid air, chattering madly, then snapped themselves to the side of his music box so he wouldn’t lose them. He smiled at Scorpius but the smile faltered when he spotted Thea. 

“Hi, Al, good summer?” she asked kindly from the doorway.

“Er, yeah it was alright thanks. Yours?” 

Scorpius was impressed Albus had asked Thea back about her summer. He could come across incredibly surly when he was unsure about somebody. Still, never _cold and unfriendly._

“Wonderful thankyou! Well, I expect we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other this year. See you later, Scorpius!” She slid the door closed neatly and skipped off.

“Did _Thea Jordan_ just talk to us?” Albus stared at the spot she’d been stood in. “And did she just call me _Al_?”

“Turns out she’s the other Slytherin prefect,” Scorpius explained, sitting opposite Albus. “And I call you Al all the time!”

“But… but she’s _Thea Jordan_ ,” he spluttered, hands gesticulating wildly. When Albus really wanted to get a point across, he tended to talk with his hands quite emphatically and Scorpius found it incredibly endearing. 

“And you’re Albus Potter and I’m Scorpius Malfoy. Glad we have everyone’s names clear.” 

“You know what I mean.” Al’s hands dropped back to his sides. “We’re nobodies to her. What did she mean, _I expect we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other this year?_ ”

“I suppose she meant because her and I are both prefects. And we aren’t nobodies!” Scorpius said, offended. Albus gave him a look. “Okay, maybe we are a bit. But not anymore! This is our year remember?”

“How could you let me forget?” Albus leant back, going to replace one of his earphones.

“Albus,” Scorpius said quickly but quietly, before Albus turned his music back on. His best friend looked up at the change in Scorpius’ tone. “I had a bit of a moment, in there with the prefects.”

Albus froze and immediately removed the earphone. (It squeaked in offence) “Did somebody say something? Who was it? Because I swear Scorpius, if it was Polly Chapman I’ll-” Albus was sat bolt upright in his seat, his fists clenched, looking murderous.

“No! No Albus, I didn’t mean that. Everybody was fine, nice in fact! Pleasant! Polly Chapman wasn’t there anyway.” Scorpius spoke very quickly. 

“Oh.” Albus slumped back in his seat, looking embarrassed. 

“I thought I was going to have another panic attack. There were a lot of people in a small space and it got to me. But it wasn’t like the other times, I wasn’t thinking about what happened.” Scorpius would have felt silly admitting this to anybody else but Albus.

“Oh Scor. Are you alright?” Albus placed his comforting hand on Scorpius’ shoulder and sent an electric shock through his body. 

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine. It didn’t get too bad. It sort of stopped before it came to a head, I managed to stay put. Your brother actually helped out a lot, he sounds a lot like you sometimes you know.” 

“James? My brother James?” Albus removed his hand and scratched the side of his head. 

“No Albus, your brother Florean Fortescue the Second who was also at the meeting.” 

Albus gave him a withering look, Scorpius’ sarcasm communicating that he didn’t need to worry about his best friend anymore. Even so, he offered the other earphone to Scorpius, who put it in immediately, and Albus tapped the music box with his wand until the song playing changed to one he knew Scorpius liked. Scorpius smiled as he realised it was the song Albus had been singing in the shower when he didn’t think anyone could hear him. Albus grinned at him, silently saying he remembered too. 

They stayed like that for an hour or so, listening to Al’s music box and sharing sweets (brought from home; they didn’t buy from the trolley anymore). The peaceful atmosphere was interrupted by the compartment door sliding open and Lily Potter inviting herself in with a glowing smile in Scorpius’ direction and an annoyed look for Albus.

“Al, have you got _my_ earphones?” she asked accusingly, eyeing the one sat in Albus’ ear. He pulled it out in irritation and glared at his little sister. 

“No, Lily. These are mine, why would I take yours when I have a perfectly good working pair of my own?” he asked her. The earphone he’d taken out perched on his shoulder protectively, as if proving to Lily that it didn’t belong to her. 

“I can’t find mine _anywhere_ and James doesn’t have them!” She came into the compartment while she spoke and threw herself down beside her brother with a dramatic sigh. Her movement allowed Scorpius and Albus to see she wasn’t alone and a friend was waiting in the doorway: a small, blonde girl who looked unsure whether she should join Lily inside the compartment or not. 

“Are you completely sure James doesn’t have yours? You know he’s always losing his.” Albus was speaking in a reasonable enough tone but it was quite clear he didn’t much want to entertain his sister for much longer. 

“He _said_ he didn’t. Can you summon them to check for me?” She clambered up onto her knees eagerly, giving Al an innocent look. Albus shook his head.

“Scorpius, can you?” She jumped down from the seat and stood over Scorpius, fiddling with the ends of her red hair. “Poppy and I want to listen to something and there are other people in our compartment.” The girl in the doorway (presumably Poppy) nodded fervently and blushed when Scorpius looked at her. 

Scorpius debated her question. He liked Lily and she was Al’s sister and he very much liked that she had asked him to help her. But this was offset by his desire to follow the rules and also a slight worry at how James Potter might react if he _did_ have Lily’s earphones and it was Scorpius who outed him. For as friendly and welcoming as James had been that summer and just now in the prefect carriage, he was still a bit intimidating to Scorpius. 

“No magic on the train, Lily, sorry.” He smiled at Lily and her friend and Lily’s eyes flashed over his prefect badge. “Even though I’m a prefect.”

She had opened her mouth to argue but closed it quickly when he said that. She exchanged a forlorn look with Poppy who looked equally disappointed. Albus looked uncomfortable for a second and then he tapped his music box again with his wand. For a moment, Scorpius thought he was going to shove his earphones back in and unkindly tell his sister to go away and stop bothering them and he was almost ready to apologise on Al’s behalf. But instead, he picked up his own earphone and held his hand out for Scorpius to place its pair in Albus’ palm. They quivered beside each other and turned away from Albus as if annoyed with him. 

“Here, Lils, take mine for the rest of the journey. There’s nobody else in here, we can play it out loud I suppose.” He handed her the earphones and she jumped up and threw her arms around him in an overjoyed hug. He looked a bit short of breath when she finally withdrew.

“Thanks, Al!” She rushed out excitedly, pulling her friend with her. 

“That was kind of you,” Scorpius told him when they’d gone. “You’re a good brother.”

A small smile played at Al’s lips but Scorpius saw him stare out of the window, grinning away to himself. 

Scorpius would never tire of the way Albus reacted when he paid him a compliment. It took him a long time to realise that there was always a way he could say the things he was thinking out loud without making it immediately obvious to everyone in the room that he had a huge crush on Albus. He just had to be careful how he worded them, but he had watched the interactions of other boys in their year and emulated the way friends complimented each other.

“ _That save you made at the end there, you’re bloody brilliant!”_

_“No offence, mate, but your hair looked better before.”_

_“Thanks, you’re a really good listener.”_

“It’s always good to have Lily owe you a favour,” Al shrugged, playing down his kindness. “Her and Poppy Longbottom can be a right pain when they’re together.” 

“Longbottom? As in-?”

“Professor Longbottom’s daughter, yes. Didn’t you know Neville had a daughter?” 

Scorpius racked his brains for any memory of this fact and shook his head. 

“Note the day down, history books: the first of September, 2021. The day Albus Potter knew something Scorpius Malfoy didn’t.” He chuckled at his own joke and sat back comfortably on the train seat. 

The compartment door slid open once more and Scorpius looked up, thinking it might be Lily again. But it was Thea Jordan, who had changed into her Slytherin robes and attached her shiny prefect badge to the front of her sweatshirt. Like Lily, she confidently strolled into the compartment but chose to sit beside Scorpius instead of Albus.

“We don’t need to patrol,” she said brightly as she sat down. “Juliette’s just told me. The sixth years have it covered.” 

“Oh! Okay, that saves us a job then I suppose?” Scorpius wasn’t sure how should react. Was he allowed to be pleased he didn’t have to do any prefect duties just yet and could instead stay here in the compartment with Albus? 

“I suppose? I wanted to do it though.” She sounded annoyed and sighed wistfully out of the window for a second. “Never mind. We’ve got two years to do this job.”

Scorpius nodded and Albus looked a bit perplexed at the situation. 

“Two years prefect, then I want to be Head Girl. And Quidditch captain of course. I’ll have more of a chance of being signed by the Harpies that way.” Scorpius’ eyes widened slightly at the confident tone in which she was sharing her life plans with them. If he’d had ambitions that big, he would have kept them firmly to himself in fear of them never coming true and making him look like a fool.

“You want to be a Harpy?” Albus asked, sounding mildly interested as well as slightly taken aback like Scorpius was. 

“It’s my dearest ambition,” Thea said, clasping her hands over her heart and closing her eyes contentedly. “See?” She held her arm out, pulling her sleeve back to reveal a small bracelet with the Holyhead Harpies logo on a bead, as if that proved her point. 

“My mum was a Harpy,” Albus said, bemused. 

“I know!” Thea shook her sleeve back into place and moved to sit beside Albus instead. “Ginny Potter, the only Chaser to reach triple figures in the preliminaries _two years in a row_.” She was gripping onto Albus’ forearms to reiterate her point. Scorpius watched her curiously, wondering if it was too late for him to establish himself as such a tactile person so he too could grab onto Albus whenever he had something to say. 

Albus subtly removed his arms from her grip with an uncomfortable smile but she didn’t seem embarrassed or put off. 

“I bet you’ve been to _loads_ of high-profile games! I used to go with Dad, when he still commentated, but we don’t get to as much these days.” She chatted away, making sure to angle her body so Scorpius wasn’t cut off from the conversation, not that he had much to contribute; Dad hadn’t wanted to take Scorpius to any Quidditch recently. 

“I’ve _played_ in high-profile games,” Albus started and Thea looked impressed but confused. “Before anyone even knew I existed.” He grinned and she laughed easily.

“Do you know, Al, I almost forgot she was your mum too, and not just James’.” Scorpius thought this was quite an outrageous thing to say to somebody she didn’t know that well and he felt as affronted as Albus looked at her comment. “No offence, just because you make me think of Potions. You’re brilliant at those aren’t you? Everyone knows that, just like everyone knows James is brilliant at Quidditch.” 

Scorpius could practically see Albus’ thoughts running through his head. _Does everyone know I’m brilliant at Potions?_

“Al is brilliant at Quidditch too!” Scorpius exclaimed before he could stop himself. Albus gave him a hard stare. 

“Are you? I’ve never seen you play before!” Thea looked interested in this information. “What position do you play? I’m a Chaser.”

“Keeper. But Scorpius is talking rubbish! I’m not brilliant, just average. Very, very average.” He had gone a bit pink and gave Scorpius a murderous look as if daring him to say more. 

“Well you’re going to try out, aren’t you? We need a Keeper this year now Ryan’s graduated!” She looked excited at the prospect. 

Albus looked like he could have happily jumped off the train again rather than answer her question. “I don’t know,” he mumbled.

“If you ever want to practise together, I normally try and run drills before breakfast. You’re always welcome to join me before tryouts!” She smiled kindly and looked at Scorpius. “You could come too if you wanted, Scorpius. Or Scorp. Can I call you Scorp?” 

“Er, if you like.” He faltered beneath her eager grin. 

“Great! Well, I’ll let you know if Juliette changes her mind about patrols. But I’ll probably just see you at the feast! Sit with me, Scorp, we have to show the first years to the common room.” She got up and shook her robes into place before sliding the compartment door open. “Bye boys!” 

There was a moment of silence before Albus burst out laughing. Scorpius gave him a look. 

“What’s that look for, Scorp?” He cracked up again at the nickname. 

“She’s a bit full-on isn’t she? I never noticed before.” Scorpius nervously watched Al laugh, hoping he wasn’t still upset that Scorpius had told Thea about his Quidditch skills. 

“ _You’d think we w_ ould have noticed _that_.” Albus gestured to where Thea had been.

“Maybe she’s making an extra effort because she feels bad about ignoring us for the last four years.” Scorpius tried to explain away Thea’s craziness. 

“It’s been ages since I met a fangirl of my mum like that.” He got up from his seat and skipped over to Scorpius, a manic expression on his face as he sat down beside him. “Ginny Potter, the only mum _ever_ to burn my birthday cake _two years in a row_.” He grabbed onto Scorpius’ arms the way Thea had done to him, a mischievous glint in his eye as he continued his uncanny impression of the prefect. “Scorp, I hope they let me become Head Girl two years early. What do you think, Scorp? Scorpy? My new best friend, Scorp?” 

He was playing about, carrying on with the joke, but Scorpius realised he actually hadn’t reacted and instead had got a bit lost for a second in Al’s green eyes, bright with his withheld laughter. He felt so incredibly in awe of his best friend in that moment, seeing him happy and enjoying himself, bantering like he’d done with his siblings all summer. The _real_ Albus. 

“ _Scorpy_ was how I used to refer to myself until I was about seven.” Scorpius rolled his eyes and Albus relaxed, the manic expression leaving his face. He hadn’t let go of Scorpius’ forearms though and he started to become very aware of the contact between the two of them and the way they were almost staring into one another’s eyes. He’d had dreams that started something like this. “Be nice, Al.” 

“I am being nice,” he complained, still holding onto Scorpius, who was starting to feel a bit hot under the collar. 

“I mean it, Al. She’s the first person who’s been friendly to us like that. We could be friends with her.” 

Albus let go of Scorpius’ arms and let them fall to his sides. “We don’t need any other friends, we have each other.” His expression and tone of voice reminded Scorpius of a grumpy toddler who didn’t want to share their favourite toy. He caught himself and smiled brightly at Scorpius. “Shall I put the music back on?”

“Only if you’re going to sing for me again,” Scorpius dared tease him, knowing it would cheer him up and it worked instantly. Albus grinned wickedly. 

“Nope, that’s _only_ for the shower.” 

Scorpius felt himself blush and he hurriedly muttered about changing into robes and started reaching up into his bag for his uniform, looking in the opposite direction of his best friend, thinking of anything _but_ Albus in the shower.

It was pretty difficult, this whole ‘secretly in love with best friend’ thing; Malfoy the Platonic would need to work overtime for the rest of the train ride.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading chapter 3, let me know what you thought :)  
> Come and say hello on  tumblr: littlerose13writes   
> The biggest shoutout/thanks to per_mare_ad_astra and Beks/morphin3 for all the encouragement/support/general amazingness ❤️


	4. Loop and Through

Being back at school was surprisingly nicer than either of them had expected. Scorpius found himself settling into the routine of being a fifth year and of being a prefect quite easily. They were kept busy with classwork in preparation for OWLs and he was often only finding the time to read right before he fell asleep at night. An upside of being so preoccupied and content was that Scorpius hadn’t had another panic attack since coming back to school, something Albus was very pleased about. 

Most people now left them alone, which was a vast improvement on the name-calling they’d been subjected to before. The Gryffindors like Polly Chapman didn’t miss an opportunity to shoot a dirty look their way from time to time but Polly kept her unkind comments to a minimum after an incident in their first week back. Slughorn was sharing their fourth year Potions results, and she began muttering loudly that Albus had only done so well because his father knew Slughorn. Albus ground his teeth but ignored her and Scorpius, feeling brave, turned around in his seat to give her a withering look.

“Oh, son of Voldemort’s cross now because _he_ wanted to come top of the class. Couldn’t get _your_ daddy to sort it out for you like your Squib friend,” she hissed so those around them could hear. Scorpius felt his cheeks burn and looked back to the front so he wouldn’t see their reactions. 

“Ignore her,” Albus whispered and he briefly placed a comforting hand on Scorpius’ knee under the table, removing it after just a second. 

Scorpius didn’t hear laughter at Polly’s use of his horrible nickname though. Instead, he heard a voice hiss louder. “Shut up, Polly. Everyone knows you had to take Remedial Potions in second year and you’re just jealous.” 

This time people laughed and Scorpius chanced a glance backwards to see Thea smiling smugly and Polly spluttering at her in annoyance. 

Since he’d been made a prefect, Scorpius felt himself relax and loosen up a little when speaking to people he didn’t know. He didn’t know whether that was the sheer necessity of the job - after all, if he didn’t talk to people, he couldn’t enforce the rules and Scorpius did like rules - or if it was to do with Thea’s influence.

Her obscene levels of confidence were contagious and, although she still called him _Scorp_ and tended to overshare about herself when they did their rounds together, Scorpius grew to really enjoy her company. He learnt that Thea didn’t have any siblings either and they conversed easily about history and books, which Thea was surprisingly knowledgeable on. She seemed to be almost as much of a geek as Scorpius was. They also frequently discussed Al’s chances of making it as Slytherin Keeper this year. The result of these conversations was always yes, he would make an excellent Keeper so long as Scorpius makes him try out. 

“Do you know, Scorp, I’m sorry I didn’t make the time to get to know you properly before this year,” she said one day in September as they were doing rounds. “You’re a really cool guy.”

Scorpius laughed at her description of him. “I am the literal opposite of cool, Thea.” He didn’t mention that he’d not made any time to get to know her either, and probably never would have had they not both been made prefects. They both knew where they stood in the social hierarchy of Hogwarts and it was very much the case that it would have had to have been Thea to make the time. 

“No you’re not! You’re very cool. You know all about history and you like the same books as me and you have great hair.” She said the last part with a sly grin.

Scorpius played with the back of his aforementioned hair uncomfortably. “I do?” 

“Oh yes, I was discussing it with Rose Granger-Weasley the other day and she agrees. Best hair in fifth year.” She reached up and ruffled it but  Scorpius stood stock still, not comfortable with her touching him. 

“ _Rose_ said that?” he asked and Thea nodded. So far that year, Rose had barely acknowledged Scorpius’ existence, other than a polite smile here and there. “I didn’t know you two were friends. I suppose, you’re friends with everyone aren’t you, Thea?”

“Not _everyone_ ,” she said with an eye roll. “I’m not friends with that utter cow Polly Chapman. And Rose and me, it’s complicated.” She had slowed her walking pace as they were coming to the end of their rounds. 

“How so?” Scorpius questioned with confusion.

“We’re friends, yes, but we’re also,” she cast around for the right word, “ _rivals_. There’s a healthy competition between Rose and me. We’re the only two who realistically could be made Head Girl in seventh year and we both know it.”

“Seventh year?” Scorpius gulped. “I haven’t even thought about what I’m going to write this week’s Charms essay on yet.” 

“I have a plan,” she said simply with a shrug as they reached the common room door. 

“Of course you do,” Scorpius rolled his eyes good-naturedly at her as she said the password and they entered the common room together. Scorpius straight away spotted Albus sat at one of the tables with his earphones in and a quill in his hand, scratching away and occasionally glancing up at his open textbook. 

“That’s nice that he waits for you,” Thea said with a nod in Albus’ direction. “ _My_ friends forgot I even had rounds tonight.”

Scorpius chuckled awkwardly, worrying she was judging him or making assumptions about his and Al’s friendship. Was it not normal for his best friend to wait in the common room for him to come back from rounds? That’s what they always did. Albus was doing homework, it wasn’t as if he was just sitting there with no other purpose than to wait for Scorpius. 

“I think that’s just where he likes to do his homework,” Scorpius said, slightly defensively. 

Thea gave him a wry smile. “Actually, I meant to say, some of my friends are having a bit of a get together on Saturday, after Quidditch tryouts. They really want you and Al to come.”

“They do?” When Thea said ‘some of my friends’ she could have been referring to around fifty percent of the Hogwarts student body but he assumed in this case she was talking about the other Slytherin girls, some of whom had been the girls who had called Albus ‘cold and unfriendly’ but who had also said how much they wanted to date him. 

“Yeah of course they do! I’m always going on about you, Scorp. And I can hardly invite you and not Al!” She waved a hand casually and went to leave for the girls’ dormitories. “Think about it, okay? And make sure he comes to tryouts!” She pointed at Albus, who couldn’t hear her over his music, and grinned at Scorpius before leaving. 

Had he and Albus just been invited to a Slytherin fifth year _party_? 

He walked over to his best friend in a happy daze and dropped into the seat beside Albus, who looked up from his work and smiled warmly, pulling his earphones out. 

“These haven’t worked properly since I lent them to Lily,” he muttered, shaking his head as if he had water stuck in his ear. “I don’t know _what_ she did to them but the volume keeps changing by itself.” 

“We’ve been invited to a party,” Scorpius said with no preamble, and Albus’ eyebrows raised automatically. 

“A party? Who’s having a party lame enough for _us_ to get an invite?” 

“Thea invited us, and I don’t think she knows what _lame_ means.” Scorpius looked over Al’s shoulder to see he’d been writing an essay for Potions which was already spreading over several pages. 

“Thea invited _you_ , you mean,” he muttered darkly, chewing on his thumb nail. 

“No, both of us! She specifically said ‘they really want you and Al to come’.” 

Albus looked surprised. “Who’s _they_? And why do they _really want us to come_?”

“Well, I’m not really sure. That’s just what Thea said.” 

“Well if it’s what _Thea_ said…” he rolled his eyes and spoke with a scathing tone.

“Al, she’s nice! Really, she is. I know she’s a bit full on but she isn’t like the others.”

They both knew ‘the others’ meant their classmates like Polly Chapman who had been unceremoniously unkind to them both since they’d started at Hogwarts. 

“I know. I know she’s nice, she seems nice. I suppose I’m just a bit reluctant to make new friends.” He didn’t meet Scorpius’ eye as he made this confession. 

“I understand, Al. I feel the same way, after what’s happened to us, but this is _our year_ , isn’t it? I think we should go to this party. We can always leave if it’s no fun.” Scorpius knew he would not attend the party without Albus, the idea was incomprehensible, but he _wanted_ to go and he wanted to convince Albus to come with him. 

“When is this party?” Albus looked incredibly suspicious. 

“Saturday night, after Quidditch tryouts.” He said the second half of this sentence very pointedly accompanied by a meaningful look in Albus’ direction. 

“Fine. I’ll go. But only if I make the team.” 

With this admittance, he went back to his essay, grinning at Scorpius’ cry of delight and well-practised platonic hug (sitting down version this time). 

* * *

With the prospect of upcoming Quidditch tryouts and their first foray into the socialite scene of Hogwarts, Scorpius and Albus couldn’t think of a way the year could have gotten off to a better start. They were corrected when another unexpected invitation was delivered to each of them at breakfast one morning. 

“They’re from Slughorn!” Albus cried in shock as he removed the violet ribbon holding his own parchment scroll together. “He wants _us_ in the Slug Club.” 

“I told you Al, it’s going to be _our year._ ” 

“But the Slug Club? That’s a big deal.” Albus was staring at the invitation. 

“I thought your dad said it was just loads of boring dinner parties?” Scorpius was confused by Albus’ reaction; it wasn’t like him to geek out over something like this, that was Scorpius’ territory. 

“I think it is, but that’s not the point, Scor. The point is we’re being noticed, and not because I’ve managed to set my feather on fire in Charms or exploded a cauldron or dropped a watering can on Professor Longbottom’s head.” Albus was grinning as he spoke. 

“To be fair, Al, you haven’t done any of those things in a long time,” Scorpius laughed. “In fact, I don’t think you exactly _exploded_ that cauldron, and we were only second years so really, it was quite impressive.”

Albus shook his head with a grin. “James has been in the Slug Club since he was a third year,” he added with a telling expression. “He’s hoping it’ll increase his chances of getting a professional Quidditch contract.”

“Will it?” Scorpius thought about his own future, about how much he wanted to become a Healer one day. He knew Slughorn was very well connected but he wasn’t sure he particularly liked the idea himself of getting something just because he knew the right person. 

“Don’t know, maybe. Can’t hurt, can it?” Albus put the ribbon-adorned scroll into his bag and went back to his waffle. “Don’t tell him I said this, but he’ll have his pick of teams to join after Hogwarts. He’s too bloody talented for his own good.” 

Scorpius nodded in agreement. After all, he’d seen James Potter play Quidditch just like everyone else and there was no denying he was incredibly skilled. Scorpius thought he wouldn’t be as good of a Keeper as Al was, though. 

“The trouble with James is he knows he’s good,” Albus continued to muse about his brother. “No idea how to be modest, that one.” 

He was nodding to a point near the Great Hall doors and Scorpius followed his gaze. James was stood with both arms crossed, an amused yet defiant expression clear from where they were sat. The object of his emotions was Lily, who was gesticulating wildly at her brother and scowling heavily. He was vehemently shaking his head in response to whatever she was asking. 

“A galleon says he’s taken her earphones again,” Albus said with a glint in his eye. 

“Well if he has, he’s not giving them to her.” Scorpius watched their interaction and was surprised by how much Lily reminded him of Albus as she stormed off in a sulk and threw herself down at the Gryffindor table beside Poppy Longbottom, muttering in her ear and both of them throwing James murderous glances. 

“Terrible brother-ing James. I definitely win,” Albus muttered as he flicked his gaze between James’ retreating figure and Lily’s disappointed and annoyed expression. 

“I’m not sure it’s healthy to compete with James over who is the best brother to Lily,” Scorpius said honestly, even though the Potter kids were his only reference point for sibling dynamics. 

“Well I’m winning and I feel perfectly healthy,” Albus grinned and drained his pumpkin juice. 

“Good, you’ll be on top form at Quidditch tryouts on Saturday then,” a third voice joined their conversation and a quick glance told Scorpius it was Thea. He smiled warmly but Albus looked wary. 

“Hi, Thea,” Scorpius put in when nobody spoke and there was an awkward silence between Thea and Albus. He looked unwilling to confirm or deny his attendance at Quidditch tryouts and she looked unwilling to leave without a response. 

“Hi, Scorp,” she said, not taking her eyes off of Albus where she was giving him a calculating stare. He was starting to get uncomfortable under her gaze and was frowning at her, Scorpius could tell he was only seconds away from glaring. 

“Sure, I’ll do my best,” he eventually gave in without glaring but without much enthusiasm. 

“Yes! Oh brilliant, Al!” Thea’s attitude switched instantly and she threw her arms around Albus from behind, hugging him around the shoulders for just a second before releasing him and skipping off. “Let me know if you ever want to get any extra practice in together!” 

Albus sat in a daze, looking like he hadn’t yet processed what had just happened but that his instinctive feeling was a resounding no. “Are we sure Thea isn’t short for _Theatrical_?” he said weakly. 

“Oh that’s good, Albus! You should tell her that, she’d find that so funny.” Scorpius said between snorts. 

“You tell her if it’s so funny,” Albus muttered uncomfortably.

The bell for classes rang and they were jostled on their way down the Charms corridor, where they had a double lesson to look forward to. Scorpius enjoyed Charms, even if he did have a bit of a habit of flourishing his wand too much, causing his spellwork to sometimes become a bit too exuberant. Professor Flitwick had once said he and Albus, who was often reluctant to move his wand _enough_ , needed to take a leaf out of each other’s books. 

Charms was one of the classes they had with Gryffindor but Professor Flitwick wasn’t a teacher who set strict seating plans, so Scorpius and Albus sat side by side. 

“Hi, Scorpius,” a voice said as they sat down. A confused glance up told Scorpius it was Ava Moon, who he only knew by sight and had never spoken to properly. She’d been one of the girls who had agreed Albus was ‘cold and unfriendly’ and she was also one of Thea’s friends. 

“Er, hi,” Scorpius said in response, trying not to show that he was flustered by her greeting. She smiled brightly and turned to unpack her bag. Albus eyed her curiously and gave Scorpius a questioning look. Scorpius shrugged to show he was just as confused as Albus seemed. 

“Today, we will learning something new. A curious little charm known as _Diminuendo_. I trust somebody can tell me what it does?”

Rose put her hand up and Professor Flitwick gestured to her excitedly. “It’s a shrinking charm, Professor.”

“Precisely. The act of diminishing the size of an object, useful when one is moving house. We will practise today, first with these dinner plates, but I would expect most of you,” his eyes hovered over Thea, “can progress to larger furniture items or even some of these guinea pigs my niece was kind enough to donate to us.” 

As Professor Flitwick spoke, Scorpius felt a nudge in his side and looked down to see Albus had pushed a scrap of parchment under his nose.

 _Why is Ava saying hi to you?_ was scribbled in Albus’ rushed handwriting. 

_No idea, I’ve never even spoken to her_ , Scorpius scrawled back. 

Albus looked unimpressed with this response and he kept throwing Ava suspicious glances throughout Professor Flitwick’s demonstration of the wand movement. The third time he did it, she noticed and furrowed her brow, causing Albus to quickly look away and become suddenly very interested in adjusting the nib of his quill. 

“Wands out now, practise with me, loop and through. Loop and through.” Everybody obediently copied the wand action. 

“Loop and through,” Albus muttered to himself. 

“Mr Malfoy, less loop, more through.” Flitwick was moving amongst them, correcting their technique and facilitating the floating pile of dinner plates in front of him so that one landed in front of each student. 

“Like that?” Scorpius asked, trying again, but Flitwick had already moved past their desk. 

“Wonderful, Miss Granger-Weasley. Miss Jordan, simply exquisite.” He gushed loudly and Scorpius glanced over to see Thea smiling proudly and looking eager to get started. On the opposite side of the classroom, Rose caught her eye and raised an eyebrow. She noticed Scorpius watching her and smiled at him strangely.

“Am I doing this right?” Albus interrupted Scorpius’ train of thought and quickly demonstrated his loop and through. 

“I think you’re going backwards,” Scorpius said quietly. “Try looping towards your wrist.”

Flitwick was back at the front of the class now everybody had a plate and he held his hand up for silence. “The usual reminder, it is _not a competition_. Foolish be the wizard who prioritises pace over precision.”

“Or witch, sir.” Thea said loudly, as Professor Flitwick set the class off to practise. She rolled the sleeves of her Slytherin robes up coolly, looking calm and relaxed, but also as if she were ready to take on a vicious troll. On the opposite side of the room, Rose had taken a similar stance and both girls held their wands ready to begin the charm, each eyeing each other, Rose with a challenging expression and Thea with just one eyebrow raised and a small smirk playing at her lips. 

“Scorpius, er, we can start.” Albus brought him back to the present and he tore his eyes away from the fascinating interaction happening nearby. 

“Don’t forget that it’s not about casting the charm _first_. It’s about casting the charm with _finesse_.” Professor Flitwick sounded slightly panicked, and Scorpius noticed he too hadn’t taken his eyes off Thea and Rose. 

Both girls locked gazes then turned away to their dinner plates with determination. Nobody else was even attempting the charm, the tension in the air palpable. Each girl raised their wand and, almost simultaneously, performed the complicated wrist movement, crying _Diminuendo_ as one. 

To nobody’s surprise, the two dinner plates which had previously sat before them were no bigger than saucers. 

“A fine example, this is what we’re all aiming for,” Flitwick said happily, picking up Rose’s shrunken plate, which happened to be closer than Thea’s, and holding it up for the class to see. “Now try it on a spare chair, girls, that’s it.”

Once again, they squared up with their wands ready and stared each other down before attempting the charm. 

“ _Diminuendo_!” This time, it took Rose two attempts to shrink her chair down to a smaller size. The legs became spindly and rickety, and it didn’t look all that comfortable, but there was no denying she’d shrunk it.

Thea’s chair was still at its full size after her first attempt, and Rose looked at it gleefully, then quickly adjusted her expression. “You’ll get it, Thea,” she said in a condescending tone. Polly Chapman was sat beside her and she nodded patronisingly, despite not having even attempted the charm herself. 

Scorpius felt a surge of annoyance in his chest towards Rose. Thea was his friend and she was being rather rude. 

“ _Diminuendo_!” Thea tried again, calmly and with a perfect loop and through. This time, her charm did work and the chair shrunk down, retaining its original appearance. Now there were two tiny chairs in the middle of the room, one much sturdier than the other. 

“Finally,” Thea muttered to herself triumphantly, sparing Rose the briefest of cool glances. 

Rose narrowed her eyes and turned and whispered something to Polly Chapman, who looked furious. 

“Off we go everybody, that’s it now,” Professor Flitwick said hurriedly.

Scorpius turned back to Albus and gulped, but Albus was still watching Thea with a new kind of admiration in his eyes. His eyes flicked over to Rose and Polly, the latter of whom was playing with the ends of her hair and still hadn’t attempted the charm herself, while Rose furiously tried to fix her own chair. 

“ _Diminuendo_!” Albus cried with determination, performing a passable attempt at the wand action, his usual reluctance to make his movements big enough barely visible. Scorpius thought maybe his Keeper practice had made him more comfortable with using his limbs. 

“ _Diminuendo_!” Scorpius tried too, trying to be precise with his movements and resisting the urge to add an extra twiddly flick to the end by grabbing his own wrist. 

Albus’ dinner plate shrunk down considerably, although it didn’t retain its shape and instead ended up a sort of wonky oval. 

“Hmm, artistic. Looks like the sort of thing Teddy would have hung on his wall as a souvenir from Thailand or wherever it was he went.” Albus looked rather pleased with himself. 

Scorpius’ own dinner plate had shrunk down neatly, but he’d been a bit too enthusiastic and it was about the size of a butterbeer bottle cap. “I could sell these to fairies,” he mused, holding it up between his fingertips to show Albus.

Albus grinned and presented his own lopsided result. “At least they both shrunk.” 

By the end of the lesson, they’d managed to shrink a few more plates with success and a chair each. Flitwick had let them have a guinea pig to work on for the last five minutes of the lesson, while he focused all his attention on Polly’s wand movement (she was still stuck with a plate that had folded in on itself instead of shrinking). 

The guinea pig was calm until Scorpius raised his wand over it, at which point it started squeaking furiously and scurried speedily over the desk, running up the sleeve of Albus’ robe and quivering inside of it. 

“I think it’s seen a wand before then,” Albus laughed, using one finger to gently stroke the guinea pig still nestled in his sleeve. He reached a hand inside and pulled the guinea pig out, cradling it in both hands until it stopped squeaking. “Lily used to have one of these, before she got her pygmy puff. She named it Squeaky McSqueaksalot and she once tucked it up in my bed for the night and told me I’d have to sleep somewhere else.” 

“Sometimes, I’m really okay that I’m an only child,” Scorpius laughed. 

The guinea pig’s reaction to the wand made Scorpius reluctant to attempt the charm again, so instead, they played with the guinea pig for the rest of the lesson. It ran up Albus’ arm and perched on his shoulder, nibbling at his hair and refusing to come down. Scorpius had to reluctantly prise it off to give it back to Professor Flitwick at the end of the lesson. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the thanks to Beks/morphin3 for working through a tricky scene with me, also to per_mare_ad_astra for all the support!  
> Next update will be Friday but come and say hello on  tumblr: littlerose13writes  in the meantime :)


	5. Sandwiches

  
During break, they spotted Lily harassing James again. She was stood with her arms folded, attempting to block his path to class, although she wasn’t really tall enough for this to have much effect. 

“James, stop being so unreasonable,” Scorpius heard her complain as they passed in the corridor.

“Sure Lil, _I’m_ the one who’s being unreasonable.” James rolled his eyes and placed his hands on her shoulders, steering her away so he could get past. Lily scowled at his retreating figure and then spotted that Albus and Scorpius were in the same corridor. 

“What did we do to deserve such an idiotic brother?” she sighed and left without explaining what she meant. Scorpius looked at Albus in confusion, but he shrugged and shuffled off to their lesson.

“What was all that about?” Scorpius inquired but Albus didn’t look that interested.

“Honestly, it could be anything. That’s quite normal for those two. It used to be James and me snapping at each other when we were younger, Lily’s kind of taken that over as we’ve grown up. I let them get on with it now.” Albus shrugged and walked ahead of Scorpius into the Transfiguration classroom. 

Transfiguration brought with it their first lesson on vanishment, which everyone knew was the most difficult branch of Transfiguration taught at the OWL level. Professor Heinz explained the theory behind the spell they were learning first, and Albus fidgeted almost the entire time. It was like a nervous energy had consumed him, and he was eager to get started. Scorpius had never seen him behave like this in any class which wasn’t Potions, and even then this was over the top.

“Albus, you’re covering our desk in bubbles,” he whispered, as Albus tapped his wand absentmindedly against the table top. Albus started, staring at his wand in amusement and folding his arms tightly. Professor Heinz set them off on a task but Albus didn’t move, still staring out into space and fidgeting. He started to chew his thumbnail, his other arm hugging his torso. 

“Albus.” No response. “Al!” Nothing except some faint movements of his lips, like he was mouthing to himself. “Albus Severus Potter!” 

Albus jumped, looking aghast that Scorpius had used his full name, because he never called Albus that. 

“Why are you full-naming me in the middle of Transfiguration?”

“Because you’re not _in_ the middle of transfiguration. You’re sat there muttering to yourself. I know we’re trying not to care what people think of us as much, but it’s really quite a peculiar thing to do, wouldn’t you agree? Is something the matter?” 

Albus looked a bit guilty. “Oh, no. I’m just thinking about… Nothing’s the matter. Where’s my quill?” He smiled brightly and retrieved his quill. 

By the end of Transfiguration, just before the bell for lunch was about to ring, Albus started to look distinctly uncomfortable. 

“What’s wrong with you today?” Scorpius hissed, his head bent over his work and turned towards Albus.

“Er, I think I’ll skip lunch today, don’t feel well,” Albus murmured back and rushed to shove his things into his bag when the bell rang. 

“Albus, wait!” Scorpius hurried to catch up with his suddenly peculiarly-behaved best friend.

“You go ahead, Scor. I’ll see you in Defence okay?” He was dashing in the direction of the Slytherin dungeon instead of the Great Hall where everyone else was headed. 

Scorpius watched him weaving his way between the moving crowds of students, feeling a bit disappointed. Something was up and he didn’t for a second believe Albus didn’t feel well. When Albus wasn’t feeling well, he became clingy and moped around feeling sorry for himself. 

Once, when he’d been recovering from a bad cold, he’d slid down on the common room sofa they were sharing so that he was lying across it with his head in Scorpius’ lap. It had made Scorpius jump as if he’d been touched by a flame, until he saw how relaxed and peaceful Albus was. He’d longed to reach out and stroke Albus’ dark hair, tracing patterns over his scalp and running his fingers through the unruly strands. He might have gotten away with it too;  Albus was so much more tactile than him anyway, he probably wouldn’t have thought it strange.

But Scorpius wasn’t brave enough to do it; instead he contented himself with staring at the pages of his book and imagining the scene in his head in great detail while Albus fell asleep on him. 

Scorpius thought that, whatever Albus was up to, he probably shouldn’t be skipping meals. Grumpy Albus was one thing, but grumpy, hungry Albus was almost unbearable, even for Scorpius. For the sake of their dorm mates, he resigned himself to walking alone to lunch, deciding he would pick something up for Albus too whenever he reappeared. 

“Scorp, wait for me!” He span on his heels and saw Thea hurrying towards him. “I was speaking to Professor Heinz about the essay. Where’s Al?” She looked around as if expecting Albus to appear from behind a gargoyle, shouting ‘ _surprise_!’ and holding balloons. 

“Good question, he went back to the common room, said he didn’t feel well, but I think he’s up to something,” Scorpius explained as they walked in the direction of the Great Hall. 

“That’s strange, he seemed fine in Charms.”

Scorpius shrugged.

“But he’s still trying out for the team, right?” She suddenly seemed worried. 

“Thea, he’s never actually said he’s trying out.” Scorpius frowned, for as much as he wanted Albus to join the team, if it wasn’t going to make him happy, Scorpius didn’t want him to do it. If there was one sure way to make Albus _not_ do something, it was to pile lots of pressure and expectation on him to do it. “Look, you’ve got to stop asking him about it okay? He’s getting stressed.”

She looked far from sympathetic. “But you said he was a good Keeper. He needs to try out.” 

Scorpius frowned deeper. “He _is_ a good Keeper. I wasn’t making it up or anything. But he’s _Albus_ and the more you try and push him into something, the more likely he is to be frightened away.” 

Thea paused for a second, looking pensive. “I suppose you know him best. We really do need a good Keeper though if we want the Quidditch cup again this year. James Potter’s Gryffindor chasers are stronger than they were last year.” 

If Scorpius hadn’t known she wasn’t, he would have assumed Thea was this year’s Slytherin Quidditch captain from the way she was talking. 

“If he tries out, he’ll be the best Keeper there,” Scorpius started, making sure he engaged Malfoy the Platonic before continuing. “But I’m not forcing him to do it and neither are you. He’s already gone off somewhere instead of having lunch with me.”

Thea looked sympathetic. “You can eat lunch with me and the girls if you wa-”

“That’s not what I was concerned about.” 

They arrived in the Great Hall but the closer they got to the Slytherin table, the more Scorpius wanted to turn back and find Albus and check he was okay. 

“Oh look, we have a visitor,” Thea said suddenly, in a strange voice.

Scorpius followed her gaze and noticed that, amongst the sea of mainly green hoods at the Slytherin table, there was a red one where the fifth years usually sat. The owner of the red hood turned around, as if she knew she was being talked about, took one glance at Thea and Scorpius and, with a bored expression, turned back to her conversation. 

“What’s Rose doing at our table?” Scorpius asked quietly, sensing something he didn’t understand was going on. Thea didn’t seem to hear him, and she’d already strode towards the group.

“Rose! How lovely of you to join us,” Thea smiled brightly as she sat down and Scorpius hurried awkwardly beside her. 

“Hi, Thea. I love your hair today.”

Scorpius checked with a glance but, as far as he could see, Thea’s dark hair was in its usual, immaculate high ponytail. It looked exactly the same as most days. 

“Thanks, Rose.” Thea smiled kindly. “Good luck for Gryffindor tryouts tonight.” 

There were forces at work here which Scorpius couldn’t even begin to understand. Girls were so _weird_. 

“Please, James wouldn’t dare pick another Beater over me.” Rose was brimming with confidence. “Hi, Scorpius.” She threw him a glowing smile. “Is Al not with you?”

Scorpius felt like he’d walked into an alternate dimension, where Rose was best friends with Thea and smiled at him. 

“Hi, Rose. Er, no. He might be along later.” Scorpius grimaced awkwardly and fiddled with his shirt collar. 

“Oh, I wanted to talk to him about Lily.” She shrugged. 

Rose and Thea began a conversation with Ava Moon and also Imogen Carlisle (who had probably the longest hair Scorpius had ever seen) about their Hogwarts uniform. They were complaining about how their skirts didn’t have a wand pocket, and Scorpius nodded here and there despite not being able to relate at all. 

“I asked Heinz why we can’t just wear trousers instead and she told me I was flogging a dead hippogriff.” Thea sighed in annoyance. “This school is so archaic at times.” 

“Why _can’t_ you just wear trousers?” Scorpius asked. “That must be so annoying, not having a pocket for your wand.”

The four girls stopped their conversation and stared at Scorpius like they’d forgotten he was even there. 

“Exactly! It is,” said Ava with a smile. 

“It’s the dress code,” Rose explained. “Girls have to wear skirts, boys have to wear trousers.”

“But that’s stupid!”

“Didn’t you ever wonder why you never see girls wearing trousers here, Scorp?” Thea questioned gently. 

“Or boys wearing skirts, for that matter,” Imogen put in. 

Scorpius hesitated, thinking about it and realising he’d never once seen a girl in Hogwarts uniform not wearing a skirt. 

“I think he’s catching on,” Rose whispered loudly to the others. 

“That just doesn’t seem fair,” Scorpius tailed off lamely.

“We’re going to do something about it,” Thea said determinedly. “We haven’t decided the best approach yet, but if we don’t speak up, nothing will ever change.” 

Out of the corner of his eye, Scorpius noticed distinct movement from the Gryffindor table and spotted Polly staring incredulously at Rose. She noticed Scorpius watching her and started gesturing furiously for him to get Rose’s attention, whose back was to the Gryffindors.

“Er, Rose, I think somebody wants to speak to you,” he said, and Rose sighed and rolled her eyes. 

“Is it Polly?” 

“Well, yes.” Scorpius felt this wasn’t what Rose wanted him to say. 

“I’d better be going, bye guys.” She rose from the table and left with a wave. 

Thea laughed at Scorpius’ confused expression. “But… in Charms, you… I thought you and Rose didn’t like each other?” he spluttered desperately, missing the straightforward conversations he had with Albus where he knew who was friends with who. 

“Of course we like each other, I’d be stupid not to have Rose on side.” Thea stared into the distance for a second. “Scorp, Albus is going to try out, isn’t he?”

She had somewhat of a one track mind when it came to Quidditch. 

“Thea, please stop asking me that question. Contrary to popular belief, Albus and I are actually two different people with two different brains and I don’t know what he’s thinking all the time. He’ll try out if he wants to try out.”

“But do you want him to try out? Do you think he should?” she asked.

“He’s good, it would be a shame if he didn’t try out,” Scorpius said honestly, keeping Malfoy the Platonic firmly under wraps. “We practised a bit together over the summer and I know James trained with him too.”

Thea’s eyes widened at this piece of information. “He’s been training with James? But surely James wouldn’t have practised Chasing like he does in matches, he’d be giving Al such an advantage in Gryffindor games. Unless…” she tailed off, seemingly completing this thought in her head. 

“I don’t know.” Scorpius shrugged. “Al’s taking it seriously though.”

With these words, Scorpius had a sudden epiphany about where his best friend could be hiding and why he was so keen to sneak off to the dorm on his own. 

“Scorp? Are you okay?” Thea waved a hand in front of his face which he now realised was glazed over. 

“Yeah, I think I know where Albus is.” 

He quickly assembled a sandwich of Albus’ favourite kind and wrapped it in a napkin. When he stood up to leave, Thea rose too. 

“Oh, er, Thea.” Scorpius hesitated, not knowing how to tell her he didn’t want her to come. If Albus really was outside practising in his lunch break, as Scorpius thought he probably was, he didn’t think he would want Thea watching him or more than likely harassing him. 

“You want to go on your own.” She smiled genuinely and sat back down. “Go ahead, let me know if he’s okay?” 

“Will do,” Scorpius said, hurrying away from the table and across the Great Hall. He held the wrapped sandwich carefully in his hand as he made his way outside, shivering slightly in the cool September breeze; he didn’t have a cloak with him. There weren’t many people on the grounds and nobody at all on the way to the Quidditch pitch. 

Scorpius thought he’d got it wrong as he approached the empty Quidditch pitch; Albus was nowhere to be seen and the pitch was completely deserted. Scorpius sighed and resignedly climbed up to one of the pitch level benches, sitting still and staring at the wrapped sandwich in his hand. He had been so sure this is where Albus would be; they were best friends, Scorpius should be able to understand him. 

He was about to climb off again and trudge back to the castle when he spotted a figure swoop into view and instantly he knew it was Albus. He moved with an effortless confidence he didn’t display on the ground, but there was no denying it was him. He’d positioned himself in front of the hoops and had apparently charmed a quaffle to fly towards him repeatedly every time he threw it back out after catching it. 

Scorpius had forgotten how good Albus was at Keeping, and he watched him for a few minutes, enjoying him excelling and looking so happy about it. It gave him the same feeling to watch Albus in Potions, where his talent shone, but it was even better when it was combined with Albus’ unhidden enjoyment. He didn’t think anybody was watching him after all, and he was allowing himself to just be good at something for once. 

After a particularly impressive save, he adorably grinned to himself and Scorpius felt the back of his neck heat up. He wanted nothing more than to jump on his broom and join Albus up there, and forget about the quaffle, and just fly away with him, and then maybe kiss him. Lots of times. 

Instead, Albus seemed to have decided he was finished, and he began to fly downwards with the quaffle under his arm. As he got closer to the ground, he spotted Scorpius and jumped in fright. Scorpius smiled apologetically and pointed to the sandwich he’d brought out. By the time he reached the ground, Albus was smiling too.

“How did you know I was out here?” he asked as he shouldered his broom.

“Lucky guess. Want some lunch?” Scorpius handed him the sandwich and Albus accepted it gratefully. 

“Thankyou, have you been here long?” Albus asked, unwrapping the sandwich. 

“About ten minutes, I forgot how good you are.” They began to walk out of the pitch together and Albus took a bite of the sandwich.

“Thanks,” he said, slightly muffled due to the sandwich, then his eyes lit up as he swallowed. “Did you put ketchup in this?”

Scorpius grinned. “You’re the only person in the world who likes ketchup in a ham sandwich, Al.” 

Albus shook his head. “Nope, my dad does too. And Lily did, before she became a vegetarian.” 

“You’re one of only three people in the world who like ketchup in a ham sandwich,” Scorpius amended. 

“I didn’t know you knew that about me,” Albus looked thoughtful and Scorpius panicked. Was it too much that he’d picked up on his best friend’s sandwich habits? “I suppose you’ve eaten lunch with me nearly every day for the last four years.”

Scorpius smiled sheepishly, as if that explained it. “I’m sure you know what my favourite sandwich is too.”

“Tuna,” Albus said without hesitating then smirked when he saw Scorpius’ face. “Joking obviously. You like chicken with lettuce and mayonnaise and only one slice of tomato.”

Scorpius was relieved it seemed to be perfectly normal to know that about each other. 

“See? I know stuff, I’m a good friend.” Albus walked ahead and looked back at Scorpius over his shoulder, his dark hair falling attractively into his eye until he brushed it away with his hand. 

“You’re okay,” Scorpius teased as he caught up with Albus. 

Their walk back to the castle had taken them to Hagrid’s hut and there was a figure outside near the pumpkin patch but it definitely wasn’t Hagrid. Not unless he’d learnt to disguise himself as a red haired, third-year Gryffindor. 

“What is she doing?” Scorpius whispered, watching Lily calmly reaching her arms upwards and bending forward. 

“Yoga. She loves it,” Albus answered. “Our friend Luna got Mum into it when she still played Quidditch, then Mum tried to get us all to do it.”

Scorpius watched Lily for a second where she had both hands down and was balancing on the tips of her toes. She raised one leg into the air in an impressive demonstration of flexibility. Scorpius tried to imagine Albus doing that too and snorted. 

“What? You don’t think I’d be any good?” He stared at Scorpius in mock offence. 

“I don’t know, were you?” Lily had moved into an even more complicated-looking move. Albus winced as she tucked her head behind her leg. 

“I was bloody awful. Me and James used to try and knock each other over on purpose until Mum caught on and said we were ‘disrupting the flow’.” He grinned and shouldered his broom again, readjusting it so it sat higher on his back. “Dad says he likes it, but I think he’s just worried about getting on the wrong side of Mum.” 

“Why? Your mum’s so lovely.” Scorpius tried to imagine Ginny Potter having a wrong side and failed. 

“She’s always lovely to _you_ , she loves you, Scor.” He was walking a few paces ahead but Scorpius could still hear him clearly. “Everyone loves you.” 

Scorpius’ internal organs flipped over once, then once back again. It wasn’t that Albus didn’t usually say kind things to him, but it was a new concept that he would say something like that. Did ‘everyone’ include Albus? Did Albus love him? What did that mean? 

“What time is it?” Albus’ question interrupted Scorpius’ train of thought. 

He quickly glanced at his watch. “Quarter to one.” 

“Shit, class starts in twenty minutes. I need to shower, I’ll see you there, Scor!” Albus called over his shoulder as he sprinted away. Scorpius was left absent-mindedly watching Lily practise yoga in the distance, a million thoughts swirling around his brain. 

* * *

Later that evening, as Albus sat opposite him in the common room with a handful of Exploding Snap cards, Scorpius almost couldn’t bear to look at him. He’d thought he could handle having a crush on his best friend; after all, he’d been dealing with it in one way or another for at least a year. 

“Your turn to start!” 

But Scorpius felt a longing for Albus ache deep in his chest. He’d never before wanted _anyone_ in the way he suddenly seemed to want Albus and it was overwhelmingly terrifying in a way which made Scorpius want to bury his face into his pillow instead of sit here opposite his painfully adorable best friend.

“Scor, is something wrong?” Albus lowered his cards and rested his chin on one hand, looking at Scorpius in question. 

“No, no! Everything’s fine, you know this game sets me on edge.” He tried to sound nonchalant, even though there was no way Albus would ever guess what was really on his mind. 

“Scorpius, I’m your best friend. You can tell me, I thought this conversation would come up.” He leant back in his chair and lightly folded his arms. Scorpius scrutinised his expression. “You can talk about it to me, I don’t mind.” 

“I… um…” Scorpius opened and closed his mouth like a fish. 

“Just because she’s my cousin, doesn’t mean you can’t talk to me about Rose,” he said calmly. “I know you still have a crush on her. Did something happen today?”

Scorpius stared at him for a second before realising he had an out. “Oh! Yes, well, Rose smiled at me today at lunch.” 

“That’s… an improvement,” Albus muttered without much enthusiasm. 

“She said she needs to talk to you about Lily,” he remembered suddenly and decided to divert the conversation away from his apparent crush on Rose.

“What about Lily?” 

Scorpius shrugged. “No idea. She just wondered where you were at lunch, said she needed to speak to you and that it was about Lily.” 

“If she thinks I have any amount of influence over what my sister does then she’s barking up the wrong tree.” Albus grinned and pushed his hair back with one hand. “Just because Hugo would do anything she told him. Lil’s never once looked up to me.”

Scorpius felt a hint of sadness at Albus’ words. “That’s not true,” he said quietly. 

“Hmm?” Albus looked as if he hadn’t been expecting a response. 

“Lily does look up to you.” His voice was a bit shaky but he carried on. “Maybe not in the same way Hugo does to Rose, but she does. You can tell she thinks you’re a great brother.” 

Albus went a bit pink and he started to chew his thumbnail nervously. For all his bravado at breakfast about being the better brother to Lily, he shook his head and refused to accept what Scorpius was saying. “No, James is the one who-“ 

He stopped at the look Scorpius was giving him. It was a new expression in his repertoire, but he’d used it more than once in recent weeks. His stop-putting-yourself-down-Albus look was only _just_ in the realms of Malfoy the Platonic.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks go to Beks and Marina for the constant amazingness❤️  
> Let me know what you thought!  
> I’m also on  tumblr as littlerose13writes  (and please, if anyone can tell me how to fix the html so that links properly, I will love you forever!)  
> Next update will be Monday!


	6. Not Just Books

  
Their good luck continued when Quidditch tryouts came around. Albus had asked Scorpius to come down and watch, although Scorpius knew the only way he wouldn’t have been there would have been if Albus had specifically asked him _not_ to come. He’d never been to Quidditch tryouts before, and he brought one of his favourite books along, just in case.

Scorpius sat in the stands with his nose in the book, waiting for the Keeper tryouts to begin. When they eventually did, he focused incredibly hard on making sure he watched each hopeful Keeper for the same amount of time and with the same facial expression so that he wouldn’t stand out when it was Al’s turn. 

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Scorpius!” Thea cried as she zoomed past on her broom, having just been reinstated as Chaser for the team. Scorpius quickly adjusted his expression as Albus’ turn started.

There was that effortless grin again, a look of pure joy as he swerved and swooped to save the goals. Only Thea managed to get one past him, but he saved the rest of hers and it was clear she was having to really put her all into getting past him. 

It was obvious to Scorpius, Thea, and quite frankly anyone watching, but Albus looked nervous and expectant as the hopeful Keepers awaited the captain’s decision. Scorpius watched as two of them were turned away and then he watched the captain clap a hand on Albus’ shoulder and grin at him. Albus beamed and immediately found Scorpius’ face in the crowd. Scorpius gave him a double thumbs up and went to climb down and enter the pitch to congratulate his best friend properly. 

When he got there, he couldn’t immediately see Albus due to the fact that he was being hugged tightly by Thea, his new teammate. Albus looked a bit taken aback but hesitantly accepted her congratulations. He spotted Scorpius over her shoulder and jogged over to him, an ear-splitting beam taking over his face.

“I made the team! I did it! Me!” He looked so adorable, Scorpius was mightily glad he had such a perfect, platonic excuse to hug his best friend in that moment. He threw his arms around Albus, who was warm and sweaty from his tryout, but Scorpius didn’t care as he felt his heart squeeze with pride for his best friend. 

“So, party later then?” he asked, reluctantly pulling himself away from the hug and not quite knowing what to do with his now unoccupied arms. 

“Yeah, let’s give it a go.” Albus grinned and then had to sprint away as the Slytherin Quidditch captain (Henrik Harper) called the new team together. 

Later, Albus was still in the shower and Scorpius was agonising over what he was supposed to wear to a party. It didn’t seem like a fancy robes kind of event really; he wished he could just wear his school uniform. 

“What the hell are we supposed to wear to this thing?” Albus asked loudly, emerging from the shower in just a towel. 

“ _I_ don’t know. I’ve never been invited to a school party before. Can you ask James?”

“Sure, Scor. I’ll just pop up to Gryffindor Tower in a towel and see what he says, won’t be long.” He rolled his eyes and half-heartedly threw open his wardrobe door. “Right, this, this and this. Done.”

As he spoke, he pulled items of clothing out and threw them onto his bed. Scorpius watched a pair of jeans, a grey t-shirt and a navy blue hoodie fly across the space then he turned to his own wardrobe and selected the same thing, instead with a dark green t-shirt and black hoodie, hoping Albus wouldn’t notice he was copying. 

Scorpius switched his dressing gown for his chosen outfit while Albus pointed his wand at his hair in an attempt to dry it faster. It stuck up at random angles all over and he tamed it just slightly with his hand, shrugging and getting changed. 

“Where is it again?”

“Seventh floor corridor, near that tapestry of Barnabus the Barmy.” 

Thea was coming down the girls’ staircase just as they entered the common room. 

“You two look good,” Thea smiled warmly and lightly touched Scorpius’ shoulder. He’d become used to her constant compliments, although they still made him squirm and panic that he should be returning every single one. 

“You too, Thea,” he said, trying not to sound awkward. 

“I like this t-shirt, Al.” She ran her hand down his arm in her usual manner, and Scorpius noticed Albus tense beneath her touch. “It suits you.”

“Thanks,” Albus stuttered out after a pause. Thea turned to leave with a flick of her dark hair and Albus looked at Scorpius in confusion, mouthing ‘are you sure about this?’ behind Thea’s back. Scorpius nodded, eyebrows raised in reassurance.

Thea chatted away for nearly the whole walk, telling Albus all about what Quidditch practices were like and sharing complicated theories on different strategies. Albus looked a bit overwhelmed as she launched into a detailed description of each Hufflepuff Chaser’s strengths and weaknesses. 

“Of course, if Freya Everfall’s back on the team, which I think she will be, she’s the Chaser you have to keep an eye on. She tends to use a swerving approach, but it’s nothing you can’t handle.” 

“Right, I’ll bear that in mind.” Albus nodded and Scorpius smirked. He knew that look, and there was a very good chance Albus hadn’t been listening to a word she’d been saying. It was the expression he tended to adopt when Scorpius really got going on an aspect of History of Magic. 

“It’s just up here.” Thea slowed down and gestured to an empty corridor. It didn’t look like the venue for a party at all, and Scorpius wondered if she was trying to make a strange joke.

“Er, is it just us?” he asked, feeling lost.

“No, you’ll see.” She smiled over her shoulder and they turned a corner. Up ahead was the Barnabus the Barmy tapestry and a blank expanse of wall and in front of it, Rose paced around, looking annoyed with something. 

Scorpius felt slightly uncomfortable and he still didn’t know how he was supposed to behave around her. She’d been quite friendly at the lunch table that week, but she’d also given him several withering looks and definitely whispered to Polly Chapman about him too. Rose looked up as they approached and appeared surprised to see the three of them together. 

“Oh good, more Slytherins,” she said with a grin.

“Hi, Rose.” Albus looked as unsure as Scorpius felt. 

“Congratulations, Al. James told me you were trying out, I bet your dad’s going to be pleased.” 

Albus looked unimpressed with her congratulations. “Probably, I don’t know.” He shrugged. 

Scorpius knew that Harry’s expectations of Albus definitely weren’t something he liked to talk about. Although he privately thought that Rose was right, Albus’ dad _would_ be very pleased that Albus had made the team, after his interest and help in training him over the summer. From the way Albus described it, it sounded as if it had been a bonding activity for the two of them. 

Rose caught his eye and narrowed her eyes slightly. “Hi, Rose,” Scorpius said brightly. 

“Scorpius Malfoy at a Quidditch party. Didn’t think this was your sort of thing?” Her head was on one side questioningly.

“I invited him,” Thea put in.

“Where are your mates, Rose?” Albus asked boldly, feeling confident that she was most definitely outnumbered by Slytherins. 

Rose didn’t reply straight away, as if she were casting around for a good response. “Already in there,” she eventually replied lamely, gesturing to the expanse of wall in front of them. 

Thea snorted quietly but then adjusted her face into a kindly expression. “Do you not know how to get into the Room of Requirement, Rose?”

Rose scowled. “Of course I know how.” She paced back and forth hurriedly and fruitlessly banged at the wall which was starting to make more sense to Scorpius. 

“Are we going into the _Room of Requirement?_ ” Scorpius nearly squeaked in excitement, and without even meaning to, he’d grabbed onto Thea’s arm. “Is this the entrance? Dad wouldn’t tell me where it was!” 

“You’ll have to excuse Scor’s geekiness. He’ll get over it in a minute.” Albus gently removed Scorpius’ hands from Thea’s arm but she was laughing kindly.

“I was exactly the same the first time I came in here too! My dad refused to tell me where it was, so I spent most of third year trying to find it myself. He was so cross that I worked it out before he could tell me.” 

“That’s all wonderful, Thea, but the bloody thing doesn’t seem to work anymore.” 

“Wow, Rose. If only you had somebody here to help you out?” Thea said impatiently after Rose tried and failed again to gain access to the party. 

“ _You_ do it then if you’re so clever!” Rose glared at Thea, folding her arms and standing back. 

Scorpius didn’t dare speak or meet either girl’s eye. The air between them was practically crackling with a kind of angry energy that felt like the warning sparks before a deadly curse. 

Thea appraised her coolly and neatly walked up and down three times. “There we go,” Thea looked triumphant as a door handle appeared for her while Rose scowled harder than ever.

“Slytherins do it best, Rosie.” Albus looked a bit smug as he grinned at his grumpy cousin and followed Thea who was opening the door. As usual, he wasn’t reading the mood well, in Scorpius’ opinion, who felt it wasn’t the time to antagonise Rose.

“Albus!” Scorpius reprimanded him for being so childish and gave Rose an apologetic smile. She did not return his smile, instead giving him a cold look as if it had been Scorpius who had upset her. She shoved in front of him in a huff and he nervously followed behind her.

They were in the Room of Requirement, which had taken on a colourful and buzzing smaller version of the great hall, but instead of four long tables, there were lots of comfier looking places to sit. It was decorated with each house’s crest as well as several banners emblazoned with the house Quidditch team emblems. There were groups of people of every house milling about and handing each other drinks and food, most of them dressed in muggle clothing. 

“Start of season party, now every house has their team picked,” Thea explained when she saw Scorpius’ confusion (after all, he’d expected to only find fifth years inside).

“Do you do this every year?” he asked, amazed there was a whole piece of Hogwarts he knew nothing about.

“Oh yes! It’s great fun, really sets the tone for the Quidditch season, keeps up the good sportsmanship between the houses. Mostly.” She finished speaking and was eyeing someone in the distance; one glance told Scorpius it was Rose who was on the receiving end of Thea’s less than friendly stare. Rose, who was a beater for Gryffindor, seemed to be energetically reconstructing a match, swinging an imaginary bat and laughing her head off. 

“What’s she doing?” Albus asked, bemused by his cousin. 

“Final, last year. That part there,” Rose was reenacting clutching at her stomach in pain, “that’s meant to be me. Her bludger. _Nice_ , Rose.” Thea muttered off into the distance, still staring at her. 

“Does she know you can see her?” Scorpius couldn’t imagine injuring someone with a bludger and then telling people about it at a party with the proud, gleeful look Rose was currently displaying.

“Oh yes, this is entirely for my benefit. She’s trying to psych me out before the season’s even begun, but she’s forgotten who she’s messing with.” Thea turned away from Rose with an innocent smile. She put an arm round Albus (she was ever so slightly taller than him). “Al, you need to meet the other Chasers properly, come with me. We’ll be back in a second, Scorp.”

Albus looked bewildered and a bit reluctant to leave with her as she steered him away and he mouthed “sorry” over his shoulder in Scorpius’ direction. He was left standing by himself, trying not to watch Rose’s continued dramatics (she was now unmistakably acting out somebody dropping a quaffle). He crossed his arms and then uncrossed them again, he fiddled with the hem of his t-shirt and stared around the busy room in which nobody was paying him much attention. 

People were circulating, confidently switching between different groups of people and chatting easily. Everyone seemed to know each other, as if there were some secret code shared between them all and Scorpius didn’t know it. The only people he knew in the room were Albus, Thea, and Rose, and two of them had just left him stood there while the third often looked at him as if he were an escaped Cornish pixie. He looked behind him where there were sofas and armchairs, then quickly averted his eyes again at the sight in front of him. 

James Potter was wrapped around a girl so tightly her face wasn’t even visible. They were snogging fiercely, his dark red hair as messy as Al’s where the girl was running her hands through it. 

“Gross. Hi Scorpius! I didn’t expect to see you here,” a voice exclaimed from behind and Scorpius spun round, thankful that somebody was speaking to him before he had to pluck up the courage and start a conversation. It was Lily Potter, her long, red hair loose and cascading over her shoulders. She tossed it to one side and threw her arms around him in a friendly hug. 

“Hi Lily,” he said gratefully, hugging her back. “I, er, came with Albus I suppose? I don’t play Quidditch.” Out of the corner of his eye, he watched a moving poster of the Tornadoes Chasers expertly weaving in and out of each other and passing the quaffle flawlessly. 

“It’s great that he’s made the team! First match of the season is Gryffindor vs Slytherin. I won’t go easy on him though.” She was smiling that glowing smile she often sent Scorpius’ way. 

“Are you on the team too?” he asked politely.

“As of three days ago, yes! I’m Seeker this year, Dad’s thrilled.” She beamed with pride. “Mum wanted me to be a Chaser, like her you know, but I think James got those genes. They’re going to be buzzing about all three of us playing this year.” 

“You Potters and your Quidditch,” Scorpius sighed fondly and was immediately reminded of his own father’s near-identical words every time Albus suggested they play Quidditch when he was staying at the manor. 

Lily grinned. “James was reluctant to put me on the team. I think he was worried it would look like favouritism, but like I said, he can’t let that get in the way of having the best team in the school.” 

There was much debate about which House could honestly say they had the ‘best team in the school’, mainly because it tended to change depending on who was playing for each team. Slytherin had won the cup the year previously and before that it had been Ravenclaw. But everybody knew James Potter was out for blood this year; he wanted to graduate with the Quidditch cup and was probably determined enough to make it happen. 

“Aren’t Slytherin the current owners of the Quidditch cup?” he teased kindly and Lily smirked. 

“For now. Have you seen my friend Poppy anywhere? I think she went looking for Al but I’ve lost her.” She stood up on her tiptoes in an attempt to see across the crowds of people, glancing up at Scorpius’ considerably taller vantage point. 

He peered around too, trying to remember what Poppy looked like. “Al is somewhere with Thea, they went that way?” He gestured vaguely in the direction his best friend and his Perfect partner had left. 

Lily looked worried. “Oh dear, she won’t be happy about that. I keep telling her. Now I’ll have to be the one to hear her moan about it all night.” 

“What won’t she be happy about?” Scorpius turned back to Lily, feeling he was missing something. 

“Poppy has a huge crush on Al, has done for ages, even though I keep explaining he’s just my dorky brother and he’s probably not interested in a third year anyway.” Lily explained this in an off-handed, casual manner but Scorpius immediately felt a protective surge shoot through him. 

“Oh, I see,” Scorpius said. Lily grinned and Scorpius realised what she’d thought he meant. “Hang on, when I said Al’s with Thea, I didn’t mean he was, you know, with Thea. They’re just talking to…” 

Lily gave Scorpius a pitying look and patted his shoulder. “Aw, Scorpius.”

“What?” Scorpius asked incredulously.

“I’ll tell you when you’re older,” Lily giggled and patted him again, spotting Poppy and waving her over. “ _Don’t_ tell Poppy okay?” 

“Tell her what? Lily, Albus isn’t kissing her if that’s what you mean.” The idea was preposterous to Scorpius. He was _Albus_. He didn’t go off at parties and snog girls like James. Did he? 

“Poppy!” Lily greeted her friend with a pointed look in Scorpius’ direction to say the conversation was over.

“Lily! He isn’t-” 

“Poppy, have you met Scorpius? He likes babies too, why don’t you chat about that while I go… over here.” Lily rushed off muttering something that sounded like “now this I have to see,” leaving Scorpius to be stared at by Poppy Longbottom. 

“You like babies?” she said, sounding confused at Lily’s attempt to start a conversation. 

“Um, I suppose so? I don’t _not_ like babies, I don’t really know why Lily said that.” 

“She’s Lily.” Poppy shrugged. “I have a baby brother, Frankie.” 

“Oh, do you?” Scorpius showed polite interest, wondering if Albus would be back soon. 

“Yeah, he was born in July and he’s-” she broke off and squeaked, looking at a point over Scorpius’ shoulder. “Well, I’d better go and find Lily.”

She disappeared so fast, Scorpius thought she might have disapparated and the reason why became clear when he heard somebody clear their throats behind him. Turning around, Scorpius was faced with three slightly intimidating figures who really shouldn’t have been intimidating to him considering he’d shared a dorm with them for four years. 

Cole Flint, Matthew Higgs and Mason Pucey hadn’t called him ‘son of Voldemort’ or vandalised his trunk. No, he’d been ‘Malfoy’ for a day or two before he was demoted to ‘Malfoy boy’ when they realised he didn’t find it funny that they kept taking Albus’ tie and hiding it so he would be told off for not wearing one.

Scorpius had started leaving his own tie in Albus’ trunk and taking the tellings off himself. 

Of course, this had been first year and they’d now grown used to Albus and Scorpius coming as a pair. They usually left each other alone. 

“Mate, what’s the deal with you and Thea Jordan?” Flint said with a friendly grin, clapping Scorpius on the back. He momentarily choked in surprise at the question. 

“He’s a prefect, so’s she,” said Higgs disparagingly. 

“She won’t shut up about you,” Flint continued. “What’s your secret, Blondie?” 

“What? Um, well… what do you mean?” Scorpius was completely nonplussed by Flint calling him _Blondie_ and still not convinced his dorm mates were trustworthy. 

“Thea Jordan. We saw you arrive with her, what gives?” He was still smiling at Scorpius, almost like he was _impressed_. “She turned Matt down when he asked her out.” He clapped Higgs on the shoulder; he scowled deeply. 

Scorpius couldn’t help but let out a little squeak of laughter at the idea of Thea Jordan wanting to go out with him. 

“Why’s that funny, Malfoy?” Higgs said slightly threateningly. 

“Shut up, Higgs.” Flint hit him over the back of the head and he took a step back and stared at his feet. 

“Thea and I are just friends,” Scorpius eventually managed to stutter out, spurred on by the genuinely friendly smile Flint was giving him. “Well, friends and prefect partners, but definitely nothing more. I don’t see her like that.” 

Scorpius was very keen for them to understand this all very clearly as any confusion could make for some very uncomfortable conversations in the future.

“You gay or something, mate?” Pucey guffawed at his own comment.

“What?” Scorpius squeaked.

“You don’t see Thea Jordan _like that_.” He used air quotes to mock Scorpius’ choice of phrase. 

“Not all of us think with the wrong head, Mase,” said Flint, placing an arm round Scorpius’ shoulders. They were the same height and Scorpius realised he really had grown taller over the summer. “I apologise for my uncouth friends, Scorpius. They’ve yet to move past the ‘anything with tits’ stage.” 

Scorpius laughed, as if this was a phase he well remembered in his own adolescence. 

“Potter not with you tonight?” Flint asked conversationally, removing his arm but standing so Higgs and Pucey were blocked out of the conversation. 

“Er, he’s around somewhere.” Scorpius gestured vaguely to the other side of the room where Albus had disappeared to and was hopefully not snogging Thea, despite what his little sister seemed to think.

“He made the team.” Flint said as if Scorpius didn’t know this. He nodded. “Do you like Quidditch?”

“I like watching Quidditch,” Scorpius explained. “Playing’s not really for me.”

“Who’s your team? I’m a Puddlemere man myself.” He clasped a fist to his chest briefly.

“Appleby Arrows,” Scorpius said proudly. 

“Well in that case, sorry about mid-leagues last season.” Flint winced and patted Scorpius on the shoulder. 

“Even I can admit that was our own fault.” Scorpius hadn’t been at the game, but he’d listened to it on the wireless with Dad. 

Flint nodded in understanding. “You fly though, don’t you, Blondie? I’ve seen your broom in the dorm.”

“Sometimes, I like to fly.” 

“Me too,” Flint smiled warmly. “Thea’s right about you, you’re not just books are you?” He clapped Scorpius on the shoulder. 

“That’s what Thea said about me?” Scorpius laughed. 

“No, that was me,” Flint chuckled. “So, is Al any good?” 

“He’s a brilliant Keeper!” Scorpius relished in using the excuse of Quidditch to gush about his best friend. 

“Well, I hope he won’t moan when I’m aiming bludgers at his prat of a brother the whole game.” Flint mimed swinging a beater’s bat a bit like Rose had earlier. 

“It’s just a game isn’t it?” Scorpius pretended he hadn’t heard Flint calling James a prat and looked away from him. There was a moment of silence and Scorpius looked up to see Flint looking at him strangely. 

“Yeah, just a game. That’s what you want to say in this place.” He gestured around them to the house team banners and posters of league teams. As Scorpius followed his action, he spotted something else in the distance which caught his eye. 

Coming towards them, their shoulders brushing together and grinning at each other, were Albus and Thea. Scorpius scrutinised the pair, looking for any telltale signs that Lily was right and they’d been snogging. The problem was, with his complete lack of experience, Scorpius didn’t really know what he was looking for other than maybe a helpful flashing sign with the words ‘we just snogged’ glowing neon. 

“Scor, you _have_ to come and see what Harper can do with a butterbeer cork!” Albus greeted him with a gentle touch to his forearm. His green eyes were bright and his smile adorable. 

Flint was eyeing Albus just as suspiciously as Scorpius was. “Congratulations on making the team, Potter,” he said with narrowed eyes. 

“Oh thanks, hopefully I’ll do a good job,” Albus shrugged modestly.

“He’s great,” Thea grinned at Flint, as she reached out and tucked a stray strand of Albus’ hair back into place. Scorpius felt himself stiffen. Flint watched the exchange with a gleeful expression. 

“Thea Jordan, we need to have words,” he said in a mock stern voice and he pulled her away by the elbow. She rolled her eyes but allowed him to lead her away.

Scorpius and Albus were left alone, and Scorpius wanted to grab Albus by the arms and force him to tell Scorpius everything that had just happened. Malfoy the Platonic however, would not allow this, so Scorpius had to settle for hoping Albus would just tell him. Albus chuckled to himself, his eyes still shining brightly and Scorpius realised with a jolt something that definitely had happened. 

“Albus, have you been drinking?” 

Albus flashed him a wicked grin and his eyes sparkled. “No,” he said with a subtle wink. 

“You have, haven’t you?” Scorpius tried to keep the accusing tone out of his voice, after all, he had no say in what Albus chose to do with himself, but a little bit of his annoyance crept in. 

“Lighten up, Scor. I only had a couple, I can handle it.” He crossed his arms casually. 

“How would you know if you can handle it or not? We’ve never had alcohol before.” Scorpius worked very hard to keep his disgruntlement of his voice.

“I have,” Albus said casually, looking away, and Scorpius’ eyes widened.

“When? Where was I?” He felt like he’d just been informed Albus had made a new best friend. Albus wasn’t meant to do things without Scorpius, they’d always done everything together, had all their firsts together. 

“Summer, with James and Teddy.” Albus turned back to him, looking confused. “I don’t know where you were, France maybe?”

“Oh. Yeah, of course, makes sense.” Scorpius couldn’t shake the feeling of abandonment. Albus had been drinking without him and now he might have been snogging some girl without him too. He knew he shouldn’t feel like this, had no right to, it was just an unfortunate side effect of being in love with his best friend. 

“Are you feeling alright, Scor? Do you want to go somewhere for a bit of a break?” He sounded concerned. “You look a bit pale.”

“I’m always pale.” Scorpius grinned to reassure Albus he wasn’t on the brink of having a panic attack. 

“Okay, I just suddenly thought what would happen if you needed me and I was over there? That’s why I came back. I know you haven’t had one for ages, but I just thought-”

“You don’t have to hold my hand all the time you know. Don’t let me stop you doing things.” Scorpius hated the idea of Albus snogging Thea but he hated the idea _more_ of Albus cutting his snog with Thea short to check his crazy best friend was alright. 

Albus nodded in understanding. “I know, you’re not stopping me. I’d had enough of what was going on over there. Anyway, I prefer us doing stuff together.” 

What _was_ going on over there? Scorpius rather felt the moment to ask had passed.

“Do you want a drink too?” he asked and Scorpius shook his head. He’d never had alcohol before and, knowing his luck, he’d find that he became a loose-lipped fool who confesses his secret feelings for his best friend. 

“Probably best, it tastes awful.” Albus grinned, his eyes still shining.

“Worse than polyjuice potion?”

“Okay, not _that_ awful.”

Thea and Cole returned, and Scorpius was pleased to see that Thea did not resume her position right beside Albus, and instead came to stand with him instead. 

“Are you having a good time, Scorp?” she asked, still giving nothing away. Behind her, Scorpius could see Cole talking to Albus, whose eyes were still wider than usual. 

All in all, it was quite an enjoyable evening. Albus didn’t leave him to go off with Thea again, which he was secretly very grateful for. They both discovered that Cole Flint was really quite a friendly guy, even if he did get into a minor argument with Albus over a disputed snitch catch at the 2018 World Cup. Scorpius spotted James snogging somebody else entirely, and Lily kept trying to catch Al’s eye, wiggling her eyebrows and making kissy faces. Unfortunately for Scorpius’ curiosity, Albus didn’t spot what Lily was doing so couldn’t react to it. 

Back in the dorm, Scorpius tried to think of ways to ask Albus if he’d kissed Thea without it sounding strange. 

_Hey Albus, did you or did you not snog Thea Jordan tonight?_

He replaced his green t-shirt and jeans with pyjamas. 

_So, snog anyone tonight?_

He headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth. 

_Lily told me something interesting._

His internal monologue was interrupted as he started brushing his teeth and Albus joined him. Neither of them could speak because they each had a toothbrush in their mouth but Albus smiled at him in the mirror. 

“Tonight was fun,” he said, after he’d spit toothpaste into the sink. “We should go to parties more often.” 

Scorpius nodded and scrutinised his expression. _How fun?_

“You should wear that green t-shirt more often too,” Albus said, heading back into the dorm. “It looked good on you.”

Scorpius stared at himself in the mirror, his eyes wide, and knowing he would probably replay Albus’ words in his head until he fell asleep.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks and love go to Beks and Marina for the editing and support❤️   
> Quite a drama-filled chapter! Let me know your thoughts and predictions :)  
> Come and say hi on  tumblr: littlerose13writes  (if anyone can tell me why the html for that refuses to link that’d be great...)   
> Next update will be Friday :)


	7. Unshakable

  
The days after the Quidditch party went by without any indication as to whether Albus had or had not kissed Thea. Albus didn’t bring it up and Scorpius didn’t bring it up either, mainly because he thought he knew what the answer would be and hearing Albus say that would be painful. He tried to study the two’s interactions to see if that gave him any clue.

Thea and Albus seemed to spend rather a lot of time together: talking about the Slytherin Quidditch team, talking about Arithmancy together, talking about the Harpies (although that was mainly Thea talking with Albus listening and occasionally contributing). Thea nearly always sat with them at mealtimes, her two best friends joining her. Although Scorpius reminded himself that she’d been doing that well before the Quidditch party. 

It was very hard to know if the things he thought he was seeing were just his imagination. 

There was the time he was convinced Thea and Albus were having a secret foot wrestle under the lunch table. She’d been watching him so intensely while he was speaking and Albus had definitely laughed at something he wouldn’t have usually. He’d deliberately dropped his fork to duck under and see, but as he made such a ridiculous show of dropping the fork in the first place, they had more than enough time to untangle their feet if there had been something going on.

Then there was the fact that Albus seemed unable to talk about his upcoming first Quidditch practice without including a speech about how great Thea was. It was always Quidditch-based and never strayed to how he actually felt about her as a person, but of course Scorpius noticed every time he brought her up. 

“Did you know Professor Slughorn is retiring at the end of this year?” 

Scorpius looked up from his Charms homework with raised eyebrows. “That makes sense, he’s splitting classes with the new Potions professor.” 

“Thea told me she’s meant to be a really good teacher.”

Scorpius couldn’t help but stiffen at the mention of Thea’s name and a conversation he definitely hadn’t been there for. “Did she?” he squeaked.

Albus nodded. “I hope she’s right. Potions NEWT is meant to be quite hard.” 

“Maybe for us ordinary folk who aren’t potions prodigies,” Scorpius teased, nudging Albus lightly in the arm and letting the Thea thing drop. 

“Evening, Al, Blondie” a voice interrupted and Cole Flint dropped into the seat opposite Albus. 

That was another unexpected outcome of the Quidditch party. Where before they’d left each other well alone save for the occasional civil remark, their dorm mates now seemed much more eager to be friends. Well, Flint certainly did. Higgs and Pucey were just as distant as ever, although Scorpius did share a laugh with Higgs when Pucey upturned his cauldron by accident; a first for both of them.

“Hey, Cole.” Albus smiled in greeting and Scorpius wondered when they’d started calling him by his first name. 

“Mind if I join you?” They hadn’t had any practices together yet, but Scorpius thought Flint was trying to get to know his new teammate a bit better. He played on the Slytherin team as a Beater and had done in fourth year too. 

“Go ahead.” Albus waved a hand at their parchment-strewn space and Scorpius smiled too. He grinned and flipped open his own essay. 

It was companionable, working on their homework together, and Scorpius felt inexplicably warm at the idea that he and Albus were making new friends. His worries about Albus and Thea were pushed to the back of his mind and he focused on the fact that this was a good thing, wasn’t it? Just like they’d said, they were branching out and meeting new people. 

* * *

Breakfast on a weekday at the Slytherin table always consisted of three things: Albus complaining about how tired he was, Albus drinking at least two cups of strong coffee, Albus ignoring Scorpius’ worries that he was drinking too much coffee. 

“It’s not that I’m not looking forward to my first practice with the team tonight, because I am, but I don’t really know what to expect,” he mused when he was nearly finished with his first coffee. “Sorry we have to rearrange Exploding Snap night.” 

Scorpius shook his head. “That’s okay, I’ve always thought it would be good for us to be more flexible with our schedule anyway.”

Albus just gave him a skeptical look. “You’ve never once thought that.” 

“That’s true. Now I’m thinking it; maybe it’ll be good for me.” 

The post owls began soaring in through the high windows of the Great Hall and Scorpius recognised his family owl, Hebe, in the throng. She circled the table and landed neatly beside his toast, sticking her leg out proudly. 

Scorpius absentmindedly ruffled her feathers as he undid the envelope with one hand and Albus poured himself another coffee. (He took it completely black, no milk or sugar or anything, because he said he needed it to hit his bloodstream as soon as possible) 

The letter inside was fairly short and was in his father’s unmistakable handwriting. 

_Dear Scorpius,  
Thankyou for writing so promptly after your arrival at school. It’s excellent to hear you are enjoying fifth year so far and all that being a prefect entails. I have no doubt you are doing a wonderful job. _

_Things are fairly normal here. Ada is already talking about her plans for this year’s Christmas tree, I think she might be starting to lose some sense, thinking it’s December. We have had her since you were little and she’s rather old for a house elf now. She, like me, was very pleased to hear you haven’t suffered with any panic attacks since arriving back at school._

_Looking forward to seeing you at Christmas. Please wish Albus good luck from me for Quidditch tryouts (and my congratulations if this letter arrives after they take place, I’m sure he will have been successful)._

_Miss and love you, son  
Dad x_

Receiving a letter from home always felt like a warm and welcoming hug that was over too soon. It was difficult not to read the letter and picture his dad at home, with nobody but their elderly house elf to talk to. Scorpius knew his dad was lonely but he didn’t know what to do about it. 

“You okay, Scor? Who’s that from?” Albus munched curiously on a slice of toast, noticing Scorpius’ expression. 

Scorpius lowered the letter and smiled. “It’s from Dad.” 

Albus swallowed and looked anguished for a second. “I forgot to write back to Mum and Dad,” he said in explanation. “Is everything alright? You look worried.”

Scorpius hesitated. “I don’t like the thought of Dad stuck in the Manor by himself.” 

Albus nodded in understanding. “It must be hard for him. My mum said-” He stopped and considered his next words. “We weren’t, you know, _talking about you_. But over the summer, we were sort of… talking about you.”

Scorpius smiled at Albus’ apologetic look. “It’s okay, I understand. What did your mum say?”

He paused. “Well, she said the same thing you did, really. She doesn’t like the thought of your dad at home on his own. I think she was going to write to him, invite him over for dinner, that sort of thing.” 

“That would be good for him.”

There was a longer pause before Albus spoke quietly. “Are you, you know, alright? You can talk to me if you want to. I know I’m not that great at knowing what to say, not like you, but I’m trying to be a better listener and you’re my best friend, Scor.” 

“Thanks, Albus. It’s good to talk. Dad and I, we… we never talk about… Mum. We talk about other things, lots of other things, but never that. And I think I’d like to talk about her… with him. She deserves to be talked about.” 

Albus patted the top of his hand sympathetically as he spoke and he gave it a quick squeeze. “I never met your mum, not properly, but I think you’re right.”

“I told her all about you,” Scorpius said quietly, fiddling with his sleeve under the table. 

“Have you ever mentioned to your dad that you’d like to talk about her more?” Albus asked gently.

“It’s not that easy. I think he’s worried I’ll get sad if he talks about her. To be honest, I’m worried it would make him sad to talk about her. We did once, that night, after Godric’s Hollow in fourth year. We talked about everything that night. I cried, he cried.” Scorpius became very interested in the jam on his toast. He wasn’t sure where this had all come from and he felt bad that he was bringing Albus’ mood down so much; he was probably making him really uncomfortable. “Sorry, I’ll shut up now.”

“No. No, Scorpius, you don’t have to.” When he finally looked up, it was to see Albus gazing at him with a look so gentle and tender, Scorpius felt himself melt inside. “You said it yourself, it’s good to talk. You can always talk to me. I’m really trying to - what was it you said?- _see past the end of my own nose_.” 

“I like talking about my mum,” Scorpius said in a small voice and Albus beamed.

“Brilliant. Talk about her, tell me about,” he cast around for an idea, “her cooking. Her favourite thing to cook, tell me all about it.” 

Scorpius smiled and felt a little bubble swell up in his chest, as he thought back to memories of Mum, her long, dark hair tied up and a flour-smudged apron wrapped around her waist, a matching miniature version on his own small self. Every Christmas, they’d spend hours in the kitchen together baking and assembling a gingerbread house and only using magic when it _really_ looked like it was about to fall down, and the designs getting more and more complicated each year as Scorpius got older, and always swearing to Dad they hadn’t used magic at all. 

“She hated cooking,” he smiled weakly. “But she loved baking, and she was really good at it.”

Albus’ tender expression didn’t shift as Scorpius told him all about the gingerbread houses and the year they’d tried to build Hogwarts but had settled on a generic castle when it hadn’t gone to plan. He smiled brightly and asked questions, and they’d both collapsed into laughter at the idea of a detailed, gingerbread version of their dorm, complete with Pucey’s old socks strewn across the floor. 

They were interrupted by the appearance of a paper aeroplane gently floating over to the table, followed by a few curious gazes of nearby first years. The paper aeroplane landed in front of Albus and he unfolded the paper, read the short note and rolled his eyes, turning it to show Scorpius.

_Couldn’t be bothered to walk all the way over. Write Mum back, Al. She’s getting worried._

James was watching them from the Gryffindor table and he held up a letter, presumably from their mother. Albus stared at James in question. James just shrugged and took a sip of pumpkin juice.

“Merlin, you jump off the Hogwarts Express _one time_ and they won’t stop checking up on you.” 

* * *

Now Albus was on the Quidditch team, and at practice two nights a week, Scorpius found himself with more alone time than he was really sure what to do with. He was used to being by himself when he was at home, but at school he always had Albus there in some way or another. It was almost a bit disconcerting to be without him, but Scorpius realised how clingy that made him seem to his best friend, so he kept it to himself. Most of his new free time was spent reading, or catching up on the occasional piece of Muggle Studies homework, the only lesson he didn’t take with Albus. 

“I suppose I’m more like my dad than my mum, but I’d like to be like Mum. She’s always so refined and put together, completely unshakable.” Thea chatted as they made their prefect rounds together. 

“I reckon you’re pretty unshakable too,” Scorpius grinned. “Not like me, it doesn’t take much to shake me.” 

“Really? You always seem so chilled.”

Scorpius shook his head, laughing. “Oh no, Albus is the chilled one, not me.” 

“Albus is the _chilled one_?” Thea asked incredulously. “You should see him on the Quidditch pitch, Scorp. He’s anything but chilled.” 

“I’ll see at the Gryffindor match,” Scorpius smiled at the prospect of supporting his friends. 

“I want to beat Rose _so badly_ ,” Thea muttered, he fist clenched. 

“Not the Gryffindor team? Just Rose?” 

Thea just nodded knowingly. 

“Ah, the rival thing. I’m not going to pretend I understand it.” 

“Probably best.” Thea smiled and peered into the empty classroom they were passing. She withdrew instantly and smirked at Scorpius. 

“Is someone snogging in there again?” He laughed, thinking back to the first time they’d come across a couple on a romantic stroll of the castle. 

“The awkward moment when the _Head Boy_ is snogging in there.” 

“He’s not?” Scorpius peered in too and sure enough, the unmistakable dark red hair of James Potter was being messed up by yet another snogging partner. Or maybe it was the same snogging partner as before, it was hard to tell. “What do we do?”

“Not much we can do. We’re meant to report stuff like this back to the Head Boy and Girl. Can’t really do that when they’re _busy_.”

“Was that Juliette too?” Scorpius wanted to look in again to confirm but he was too scared of getting caught. 

“That’s who it looked like to me.” Thea grinned and hurried off. “James Potter, wow. Al isn’t a bit like him, is he?” 

Scorpius shook his head but her question intrigued him. “They’re very different as brothers go. You wouldn’t find Albus doing that.”

“Wouldn’t you?” Thea smirked and Scorpius froze. Was she talking about the Quidditch party? “I’m joking, Scorp. I know Al’s nothing like James. D’you know, he tried to snog me.”

“Albus did?” Scorpius squeaked, feeling a wave of disappointment wash over him. 

Thea laughed. “I was talking about James. I was only in third year, and I’m pretty sure it was when I was dating Cole.”

“You dated Cole?” Scorpius wasn’t sure how he was meant to react. He was still processing what she’d just said. _I was talking about James._ So, did that mean she _hadn’t_ kissed Albus? It was all very unclear. 

“Not properly - like I said, we were in third year - but yes, I dated Cole. I thought everyone knew that.” She eyed him a bit strangely. 

“I’ve never been very in the loop,” Scorpius admitted. “And I’ve never dated anyone.” 

Thea looked a bit confused. “But I thought… Didn’t you ask Rose out once?” 

Scorpius felt himself blush with embarrassment at the memory. “Yep. Rejected.” 

She considered his words for a while and they lapsed into a comfortable silence that followed them back to the Slytherin common room. Scorpius was picturing a scene where he asked _Albus_ out and the resulting hug they would share, and the nice date he would take him on, to one of the museums or galleries in muggle London he’d visited as a child. Albus and him could hold hands while they looked at the exhibits and they could drink hot chocolate together until-

“Would you ever ask her again?” Thea blurted out as they came to a stop. 

“Huh?” Scorpius wrenched himself from the fantasy playing in his mind and tried to focus on Thea’s question. 

“Rose. Would you ask her out again? Do you still fancy her?” She spoke bluntly and with no trace of embarrassment. 

Scorpius didn’t know how to answer. Should he lie and say he did fancy Rose? Should he tell a part truth and say he didn’t fancy Rose? 

“Sorry, it’s none of my business. I’ll stop interrogating you.” She grinned as they got to the common room, one glance telling Scorpius that Albus wasn’t at his usual table doing Arithmancy homework like he had been before they left for rounds. 

It wasn’t until nearly an hour later that he saw Albus again, when he came striding into the dorm, wrenching his earphones from his head and watching them fly back to the music box on his bedside table. He was wearing a green Slytherin Quidditch team t-shirt which was dark at the neck with sweat and his hair was damp.

“Where have you been? You don’t have practice on a Monday.” Scorpius made sure to not sound accusatory that Albus had made plans he didn’t know about. After all, that was normal behaviour. 

“Running.” Albus said nothing else, grabbing the front of his sweaty top with both hands and pulling it up and over his head. Scorpius was faced with Albus’ bare, muscular torso and he felt himself grow warm. 

“Since when do you go running?” This was a new development.

“Since I joined the team and realised how out of shape I am for a Quidditch player,” he explained, grabbing a towel and slinging it over his bare shoulder. “I like it, it clears my head. You can join me some time if you want?”

Scorpius tried to imagine himself voluntarily running around the castle grounds until he was as sweaty as Albus was now. Even the prospect of joining his best friend wasn’t enough to tempt Scorpius into going running. 

“That’s okay, I save any running I do exclusively for escape reasons.”

“Fair enough, it’s not like you need to get in shape either.”

“Nope, no Quidditch for me.”

“No I meant… well, you have a good body already.” He blushed and looked away and Scorpius dropped his book in surprise. He ducked down to pick it up, wondering how he was supposed to respond to that platonically? “I’m off to shower, bye.” 

He rushed into the bathroom and seconds later, Scorpius heard the running water of the shower. 

* * *

“Scor, you know that thing I said last night, about you having a good body? I really meant it.” 

Scorpius felt giddy with excitement and he blushed furiously. Albus was sitting on the end of his bed, smiling at him and his green eyes were more beautiful than ever before, his dark hair tousled perfectly.

“I’ve liked you for a long time, Scorpius, as more than a friend.”

Scorpius opened his mouth to tell Albus how happy that made him, and that he felt the same way but every time he tried to speak, a loud, rushing sound drowned him out. 

“I’m glad you know I’m in love with you.” Albus held his hands tightly and they were soft and warm. “Nothing can hurt us here.”

“Who wants to hurt us?” The rushing noise wasn’t blocking his voice anymore. 

“She can’t hurt us, I’m brave. Do your worst.”

Albus stuck his chin out in defiance and Scorpius knew who it was going to be before it happened. In a rush of dark robes, Delphi appeared right there in the Slytherin dormitory. 

“I escaped from Azkaban to resurrect my father once and for all. Happy Voldemort Day, boys!” She showed them her Auguerey tattoo and Scorpius just knew by looking at it that it had worked, she’d brought back hell, he was the Scorpion King again. But that meant…

Scorpius looked at the end of his bed again and saw the still, lifeless form of Albus, clearly dead right there on his bed. He’d killed Albus, he’d brought back Voldemort and he’d killed Albus. Albus was dead.

He threw himself over Albus’ cold, dead body and cried hard into his chest as if that would bring him back to life. 

“You know Albus doesn’t exist in this world, I had to kill him, Scorpius. Just like I killed Craig, he didn’t even feel a thing. Such a spare. Now I think I’ll kill you too. But first, _crucio_!”

Searing, intense pain flooded his veins and he was pulled from Albus’ body by the force of the curse. Every muscle and nerve cried out in pain and panic as he desperately tried to reach back for Albus. If he could just get a hold of him, the time turner would spin and they’d be taken to Godric’s Hollow and his dad and Albus’ dad would help them. 

He felt around desperately in the darkness for Albus’ hand, if he could just get hold of it…

All he grabbed onto was handful after handful of duvet. He was the only one in his bed, Albus wasn’t there, Delphi wasn’t there. He looked up and blinked in the darkness, noticing that there was very little light in the dorm, as if it were the middle of the night. He was gripping onto his own duvet, and he was drenched in sweat.

It had been a nightmare. 

Scorpius flopped back down onto his bed and listened to his heartbeat racing in his eardrums. Another stupid nightmare had woken him up. Delphi torturing him was nothing new, he’d even dreamt he was back in the alternate reality where he was the Scorpion King before, but he’d never been forced to see Albus’ lifeless body. That was a new kind of pain. 

His breathing began to return to normal as Scorpius realised there were tears in his eyes and on his cheeks. He wiped at them haphazardly and reached for his wand, the darkness consuming him. A quick _lumos_ helped him feel a bit calmer, the light making the dormitory seem very normal and mundane. He pulled his hangings shut and pulled out a book, reading it feverishly by wandlight until, finally, hours later, he drifted off to sleep again.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Andddd the angst starts here...  
> Thankyou to everyone who has left feedback so far, it makes me so happy to read!  
> Always thanks to Beks and Marina❤️  
>  tumblr: littlerose13writes   
> The next chapter will be up on Monday!


	8. A Strong Cup of Tea

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: this chapter contains description of a panic attack

The following morning was hellish when Scorpius was woken up by his dorm mates leaving the room and feeling completely unsatisfied with the amount of sleep he’d had, and still a bit shaken up from his nightmare, not least because his brain was choosing to focus on the beginning part where Albus admitted to having feelings for him. 

Their morning lessons were a blur of exhaustion and Scorpius didn’t feel he’d fully woken up until halfway through Care of Magical Creatures, which thankfully was over quickly.

Scorpius and Albus walked side by side back to the castle, Albus’ school bag swinging between them while he laughed about their Care of Magical Creatures lesson where a niffler had made its way into Pucey’s wallet and stolen all his gold. Scorpius stifled a huge yawn. 

“Am I boring you, Scor?” Albus teased.

Scorpius shook his head. “Sorry, I didn’t sleep well last night.” He hadn’t planned to tell Albus about his nightmare, he didn’t need to know.

Albus looked at him very seriously and Scorpius knew he had figured it out. He tried to arrange his face into a casual expression but another yawn took over and slightly spoiled the effect. 

“Did you have another nightmare?” he asked in a low voice, even though there was a good distance between them and the rest of the class who were hurrying through the high winds inside for break. 

“Sort of,” Scorpius admitted. “It wasn’t too bad. It’s just impossible to fall asleep afterwards.”

Albus looked a bit put out. “You should’ve woken me up.”

“Why? So we could both be sleep deprived today?”

“No! So I could… I don’t know, help you somehow?” He looked apologetic with this lame response. “I’ve been using that portable, two-way silencing charm from Uncle Ron since Higgs started snoring so badly. I didn’t hear you wake up. Do you want to talk about it?”

Scorpius could hardly explain why his nightmare had been so horrible without revealing his feelings for Albus, and he wasn’t about to do that in the break before double Potions on a windy Tuesday morning. 

“It was just the usual, you know. Delphi was there, she was trying to torture me, Voldemort was in power, I was the Scorpion King, you never existed.” He tried to say this casually, almost with amusement, to trick himself into thinking it was all a funny story that couldn’t hurt him in his sleep. 

The truth was that, even with all of that horrificness, the one thing that tore Scorpius from sleep for the rest of the night was the crushingly real feeling that Albus was gone, the idea of losing him. It made him feel sick. 

“Scorpius?” Albus had stopped which made Scorpius realise he had stopped too. He was standing stock still, rooted to the spot and feeling like all his blood had just been drained from him in one quick motion. 

He couldn’t breathe, his lungs were working furiously but nothing was happening. Oxygen refused to enter them, he was going to pass out and die because he couldn’t breathe. His vision was blurring, darkness creeping in from all sides as he felt his legs crumple beneath him. He was falling, falling, further and further down and he wasn’t breathing anymore. He was going to die. 

“Scorpius look at me, right at me, that’s it, just look at me.” Scorpius vaguely heard a calm voice as he breathed in and in over and over, trying to get his breath to catch right at the back of his throat where he needed it. It wasn’t quite reaching, but it was going into his lungs, his vision was clearing. 

Albus’ familiar, kind face swam into view. _Albus, I’m going to die._ He tried to speak, tell Albus, ask him for help. But nothing happened. All he could do was continually breathe in, he was hyperventilating. 

“Press your palms together. _The Battle of Hogwarts took place between the first and second of May, 1998 and culminated in the demise of Tom Riddle_. Take your hands apart. _Many consider this battle as the start of the new wizarding world, due to the major reformations to the key structures of our world since_.” 

He’d joined his hands together as if praying then taken them apart as instructed. Why? He knew these words, these words were familiar and they came from his History of Magic textbook. He could breathe when he heard Albus’ voice read these words, he knew these words and these words wouldn’t hurt him. Albus wouldn’t hurt him, wouldn’t let him die. His heart was staying put inside him, its thumping had decreased. His breath had finally caught, he wasn’t going to die. He wasn’t going to die. 

“Hands together. _Harry Potter was a key figure throughout this process_. Hands apart.”

“M’okay.” Somebody with Scorpius’ voice spoke and it took him a few seconds to realise it was him. He was breathing heavily, as if he’d forgotten how.

“Breathe in through your nose.” Scorpius obeyed. “Out through your mouth. And again.”

Albus talked him through this breathing process a few more times before he became fully aware of his surroundings again. He was in the grounds, not far from Hagrid’s hut but nobody was around apart from Albus, who was focused intently on Scorpius. He was sat on the ground, leaning weakly against Albus’ school bag and Albus was sat in front of him, looking concerned. 

“Tell me what you need now.” 

Scorpius was starting to realise what had just happened. He’d been fine for months, no nightmares, no panic attacks, and he’d just been walking to class with Albus. Everything had been completely normal, he’d been trying not to think about his nightmare, and it had hit him like a strong reducto. Now he was here outside with Albus and he just wanted to bury his face away from view. 

“I need you.”

Albus said nothing and just got up onto his knees and opened his arms out tentatively. Scorpius didn’t think and simply fell into them. Albus cradled his head against his chest and they stayed like that for a few minutes before Scorpius could speak. 

“What’s wrong with me, Al?” 

Albus pulled away from him and held him at arms’ length, his hands atop Scorpius’ shoulders. “ _Nothing_ is wrong with you. You went through something most people can’t even _imagine_. It’s normal to have a reaction, you can’t just snap back as if it never happened.” 

“Why can’t I just get better?” Scorpius heard the childish desperation in his question. 

“My cousin Victoire is studying stuff like this at St Mungo’s. You know, mental health rather than physical. She says it’s often harder to heal a brain than a body. It’s going to be her specialism when she becomes a Healer.”

“She’ll be good at that.” He was remembering Victoire from James’ birthday and imagined her presence would be quite calming. 

“She will. Wizards don’t put enough value on some muggle therapies, like just talking about how they feel, and instead want to use spells and potions to fix everything. But that doesn’t always work.” 

“Can’t really use _episkey_ on my mind can we?” He tried to smile light-heartedly but he felt like he’d been in a fight with a troll and the troll had got a good few whacks of his club in. 

“We can write to her if you want. Vic, I mean. She might be able to help you. Only if you want to though,” Albus said tentatively. 

“Maybe.” Scorpius wasn’t sure how he felt about this prospect when a thought occurred to him. “Were you reading _A History of Magic_ to me earlier?” 

Albus flushed. “I memorised a few pages, just in case this happened. I thought you’d like it.” 

Scorpius managed a small smile. “I can’t believe I’ve got you _memorising textbooks.”_

Albus beamed when he heard Scorpius speaking in a more light hearted tone. “C’mon, I’m taking you to Madam Pomfrey.”

“No,” Scorpius protested, trying to stand up. Albus was still holding onto him. 

“What do you mean _no_? You have to, she’ll remember what to do.” Albus was pulling him to his feet. “Come on, before the corridors fill up for classes.” 

“ _No_ ,” Scorpius repeated. “I don’t want to go to the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey will write to my dad, and he was so pleased when I told him I wasn’t having panic attacks anymore. I don’t want him to know.”

Albus looked at him with sad eyes. “Scor, you have to tell him.”

Scorpius pictured his father, still encumbered with grief and the way he had failed to hide how distraught he had been when Scorpius had panicked over the summer. He’d tried, of course he had tried, but Scorpius knew it was too painful for his dad to see him suffer. Here at Hogwarts, he had the ability to keep this from him, and maybe that way his dad could start to heal himself. 

He thought of Albus’ own father, when he’d been staying at the Potters’ in the summer. How warm and easy the relationship between Harry and Albus had become, the way Harry made it so clear he was there to listen to anything Albus had to say, even when Albus was in one of his moods. It made Scorpius’ heart ache with envy. He knew his dad loved him, but he also knew his dad was nowhere near ready to talk about what happened. He didn’t want to cause him even more pain. 

“Not yet, please.” It was all he could answer. “Don’t make me go to the hospital wing, she’ll only want to give me a calming draught and you know I hate the side effects of that stuff. It’s not as if she can stop me having another one ever.” 

Albus looked at him sympathetically then gazed around them, his eyes landing on Hagrid’s hut. “Can we at least go to Hagrid’s? You look like you could do with a strong cup of tea, no side effects to that.”

“We’ll be late for class. It’s double Potions, Al, your favourite.”

“I don’t care,” he shrugged, beckoning for Scorpius to follow him. “You’re more important.” 

_You’re more important._

Scorpius wondered if Albus had any idea the effect his throwaway comments could have. 

They knocked on the door and Hagrid emerged, a large and unwieldy knife in his hand. Scorpius eyed it warily, not that Hagrid was at all threatening, but he didn’t always have the best aim. 

“Hi Hagrid,” Albus said as soon as the door opened. “Can we come in please? I’m, er, not feeling well.” 

Hagrid looked concerned and stepped back to let them inside. The table was mostly taken up with what looked like rotten vegetables, which Hagrid was preparing with the knife for an unknown creature. 

Scorpius was grateful that Albus had lied for him and he stayed silent as Hagrid quizzed his best friend about why he felt unwell and tried to force him to the hospital wing and said he was going to write to Al’s parents. Albus let him fuss, but he slid the cup of strong tea Hagrid made for him in Scorpius’ direction, swapping it for his own. Hagrid didn’t notice. 

“Bin meaning ter have a word with yer about yer sister,” he said, appraising Albus over the rim of his mug. “She ‘asn’t bin turning up ter feed her Hippogriff like the other third years.”

Scorpius found this information surprising; he knew Lily Potter was very fond of animals. Albus however, didn’t look very surprised and instead rolled his eyes.

“What were you asking her to feed it?” he asked knowingly. 

“Usual stuff, Hippogriffs eat insects and small mammals. I’ve had ‘em on ferrets and worms.” Hagrid looked confused by Albus’ question. 

He nodded in understanding. “She has a thing at the moment about eating animals. She won’t do it anymore, apparently that extends to feeding Hippogriffs too.” 

“But they’re wild creatures? That’s wha’ they eat.” Hagrid was perplexed.

“Try telling that to Lily,” Albus muttered and took a sip of tea.

Hagrid watched him for a second. “I found ‘er in the forbidden forest yesterday.”

Albus nearly spat his tea out. “Lily was in the forbidden forest? Oh, don’t tell Dad. He might have a heart attack.” 

“Nearly gave me an ‘eart attack and all! Tiny thing like ‘er, wandering around with all those creatures. She told me she got lost.”

Albus scoffed and rolled his eyes. “If Lily was in the forbidden forest, she wanted to be there. Trust me.”

“I didn’t think ‘er story added up, going on about a homework assignment ter draw a map o’ the grounds or something?” 

Scorpius laughed, and instantly felt his mood lift and his heart lighten. He still felt as if he’d been pummelled with a beater’s bat, but that was normal after a panic attack. For now, he was safe with his best friend, laughing together about his little sister and her eccentric ways. 

“The thing about Lily is detentions don’t seem to worry her,” Albus chatted away. “She thinks of them more as social occasions, or a chance to practise her singing if she’s left alone.” 

“The Potters like their singing, Hagrid,” Scorpius said, throwing Albus a mischievous look, letting his best friend know he was feeling better and he was very grateful for him. 

Albus grinned back, picking up on Scorpius’ change in mood. “We’re thinking of starting a band,” he laughed. “ _Shower Serenades._ ”

Hagrid watched Albus. “Yer seem quite bright. Are yer feeling well enough to go to class? I’ll write yer teacher a note, who do yer have next?”

“Slughorn, double Potions,” Albus muttered, glancing at Scorpius who nodded. “And yes, I feel well enough.”

“Right then, best be on yer way then,” he said, scribbling a note. He looked up at Scorpius when he’d finished writing. “Yer a very good friend, Scorpius, making sure ‘e’s alright.” His eyes were twinkling as if he knew what was going on. 

“Are you sure you feel better?” Albus said worriedly as they climbed the castle steps. “You don’t need to lie down?”

Scorpius imagined going back to the dorm and laying in the dark by himself, then he imagined attending Potions and being in the same room as Albus. He knew which was more appealing. 

“I’d prefer to keep busy,” Scorpius said honestly and Albus nodded. 

They shuffled into the dungeon classroom and every head turned to stare at them. Scorpius looked at his feet and Albus awkwardly handed Slughorn the note from Hagrid. He read it and nodded sympathetically. “Take a seat, boys.” 

Potions was Scorpius’ favourite subject (other than History of Magic which would always be his ultimate favourite) because he loved seeing Albus excel. Ever since fourth year, when he had really come into his own, Albus shone in Potions class, working in an adorably unsystematic order but somehow still managing to produce the best brew in the class. Slughorn doted on him and said he was a natural, which made Albus squirm in discomfort but didn’t stop him continuing to be top of the class. It was another lesson they shared with the Gryffindors. 

“You’ve joined us just in time to hear which brew you will be making today.” Slughorn smiled at him and Albus. “This potion is tricky, one of the trickiest you will learn this year, and my intention is for you to brew it today, and then again at the end of the school year when you will have all, no doubt, improved.” 

There was an excited buzz as they waited to find out which potion they would be brewing.

“You will be attempting to brew the cure for Dragon Pox. As some of you may know, this potion originates from the 14th century but was revised more recently. Unfortunately, nobody has found a revision of the cure which completely eradicates the greenish tinge to the sufferer.” 

“Like poor Jeremy Boot,” whispered Imogen Carlisle. 

Jeremy Boot was a Hufflepuff in the year above who had suffered a bad case of Dragon Pox as a child. He’d survived but his skin was a faint shade of green at all times and nobody ever liked to mention it.

“You will be using the revised recipe, which you will find on page seventy-nine of your books. As this potion is particularly tricky,” he flicked his wand at the blackboard and everyone’s names wrote themselves in a long list, “you will be working in pairs.” Another flick of his wand rearranged the names so they were lined up in pairs. 

There was a moment of silence while everyone browsed the list for their partner’s name and movement started as people partnered up and started to collect ingredients. Scorpius ran his eyes down the list and found his name. 

_Scorpius Malfoy - Cole Flint_

Just below, he read:

_Albus Potter - Thea Jordan_

Scorpius shared a look with Albus and he shrugged and gathered his potions kit up to go and sit with Thea. His place was taken instantly by Cole, who looked pleased. 

“If I have to work with an Arrows supporter…” He grinned and placed his own potions kit on the desk. Scorpius smiled back and started to set a cauldron up between them. “Are you any good at potions, Blondie?”

Scorpius looked up from the bracket he was setting the cauldron up on. “I’m alright, I can follow the instructions well enough that nothing usually  goes horribly wrong.”

Cole looked relieved. “I’ve been called a _hazard near a cauldron_ on more than one occasion. Mind if I stick more to prepping the ingredients?” 

“Not at all.” They shared a friendly smile and Scorpius flipped the textbook to the correct page, glancing over the rather complicated instructions. 

“We have to soak the dragon scales in essence of murtlap for thirty minutes before we can add them, so we should do that first.” Cole read over his shoulder and rummaged in his Potions kit for what he needed. 

“Isn’t it weird that you need dragon scales to cure Dragon Pox?” Scorpius mused as he lit a fire under the cauldron with his wand and set it off gently warming. 

“Hmm? A bit. Dragons can’t catch Dragon Pox.” Cole held up one of the greenish-blue dragon scales and it caught the light attractively. “Look at these things. My aunt has a dragon-hide handbag like this. This is the ingredient that turns people green; shame it’s useless without them.”

“You know a lot about this potion,” Scorpius observed as Cole tipped the shiny scales into the murtlap. 

“My grandma had it this summer, a really bad case too. Even if she’d been younger she probably wouldn’t have survived.” Cole was rummaging in his potions kit again and not looking at Scorpius as he spoke. 

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “Were you close?”

Cole looked up with the next ingredient in his hand and sighed. “We were as it happens. She was almost like a mum to me, seeing as mine wasn’t that interested in being a mum.” 

Scorpius had never spoken to his dorm mate about anything other than trivial, day-to-day topics like if he could borrow some toothpaste or who a cloak belonged to. It was like they were meeting for the first time as completely new people. 

Cole seemed to notice Scorpius wasn’t sure how to respond to that and he grinned. “Don’t feel sorry for me or anything, I had Dad and Oliver growing up and they were more than enough. And then I had my grandma, until this summer.”

“I know how that feels. I… I lost my mum, more than two years ago now.” The cauldron fire roared between them but neither of them were touching the ingredients. 

“I know. I’m really sorry for your loss, Scorpius. I wanted to say something at the time, but we didn’t really speak and I didn’t want to intrude.” He paused for a second. “Does it… does it get better? Missing them?”

Scorpius could hear the desperate plea in his voice. “Better isn’t the word. You’ll always miss her, but it becomes easier to accept after time. The missing doesn’t go away, but it’s fonder and less painful.” 

He realised he was smiling away to himself and Cole gave him a grateful look. “Thanks, Scorpius. That's… thanks. You’re a mate.” 

“And how are things going over here, boys? Good to see you’ve got your dragon scales soaking, many have overlooked that instruction. Hop to it, get slicing your daisy roots, chop chop.” Slughorn leaned over their cauldron and peered inside as he spoke, not that there was much in there to see.

“Chopping, sir,” Cole said briskly, doing exactly that.

“Now, when you add the sea water, Scorpius, you’ll want to pour from the left side of the cauldron, like Albus over there is doing.” He pointed across the classroom at where Albus and Thea were working. 

Albus was clearly in what Scorpius called ‘Potions Mode’ and what Albus called ‘shh, Scor, I’m trying to concentrate’. He’d loosened his tie and pulled it to one side and he’d rolled both of his jumper sleeves up to his elbows. His hair was its usual mess but he’d swept it back from his face, where the steam from his cauldron made it stay in place. It made him look completely different, having his hair pushed back like that, older and more mature but at the same time incredibly attractive to Scorpius. He was smiling broadly and passing ingredients back and forth with Thea, who looked highly impressed. 

“Scorpius, mate,” Cole interrupted his staring and Scorpius turned to him with a guilty start. “I know you said it was nothing at the party, but you can tell me. I don’t mind if you fancy her.”

 _Oh_. Cole thought he’d been staring at Thea. 

“No, no, I don’t, honestly. Just… thinking about the potion.” Cole shrugged and smiled again as Slughorn bobbed back into view.

“Come on, boys. You’re hardly any further on than the last time I was here.”

He stood watching over them as Scorpius hastily tipped the sliced daisy roots into the cauldron and it turned a bright white. Cole kept glancing suspiciously at him, as if he didn’t believe a word, but Scorpius could hardly say anything to defend himself in front of Slughorn. It was true though, he _didn’t_ fancy Thea and he _hadn’t_ been staring at her. 

“Counter-clockwise, that’s it.” Slughorn waited expectantly for Scorpius to stir the potion, but he couldn’t help his eyes flicking frequently to what Cole was doing. Clearly, he was enough of a _hazard near a cauldron_ for Slughorn to monitor them constantly. “Now, Scorpius, can I expect your attendance at my November soirée?”

Scorpius lost count of his stirs and hurriedly tried to work out if he’d done enough. “Yes, sir, I’ll be there. Thankyou for the invitation.”

“That’s quite alright. It was quite the adventure you got up to last year, everyone’s still talking about it of course. The stories! Of course, I don’t like to listen to gossip, but…” he tailed off with a wicked glint in his eye. 

“Not yet! It’s too hot to test.” Scorpius hurriedly grabbed the spoon from Cole’s grasp before he could taste a drop like the instruction recommended at this stage. 

“Just like your mother, she was always careful with her potioneering. I always said she’d make a wonderful Healer if circumstances had been… well, you’re very alike in a lot of ways.” 

“That’s what I want to do, sir,” Scorpius said eagerly, hoping Slughorn would tell him more about his mum in class. “I want to be a Healer when I leave school.” 

“A Healer, hey? Well now, let me think.” He tapped his chin thoughtfully. “Ah, Hetty Fairchild. Taught her everything she knows about healing potions I did, and now she’s in charge of a team of forty at St Mungo’s. What do you say I drop her an owl, see if she can’t join us for our next get together? I’m sure she’d love to talk to you about Healer school.” 

“Thanks, sir.”

This seemed like an interesting prospect. He’d really enjoyed talking to Albus’ cousin, Victoire, about her experience as a student at St Mungo’s School of Healing Excellence. It would be fascinating to also talk to someone who’d been in the field for a long time. 

Their potion was complete with the final ingredient of the soaked dragon scales, which turned it a lurid green, not far from the shade described in the recipe. 

“Blimey, I feel like I’m turning green just looking at this thing.” Cole pretended to shield his eyes from the potion’s bright glare while Slughorn came round to inspect. 

To nobody’s surprise, Albus and Thea’s potion was the best by far, but Slughorn did take vials of several pairs’ work, including Scorpius and Cole’s attempt. 

“It’s a shame you can’t cosy up together with Jordan during the game on Saturday, Potter. Then maybe you’d stand half a chance of catching the quaffle,” Polly hissed snidely, loud enough for most people to hear. 

Thea simply rolled her eyes and muttered but Albus, only slightly red, turned around to glare at her. Albus, who had always coped by ignoring and looking the other way, and never bit back. 

“It’s a shame you didn’t make the team this year, Polly. Or last year. And remind me, did you make it the year before that either? Have you ever made the team?” 

There was a shocked silence at Albus’ words. Not because of what he’d said, but the rest of their classmates, like Scorpius, were expecting Albus to ignore her like he usually did. 

“Yeah, well…” Polly visibly cast around for something to hit back with as Albus glared at her and turned to clear his Potions kit away. “At least I don’t have stupid hair.” 

Even Karl Jenkins was looking at her with secondhand embarrassment. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Please feel free to leave any feedback you have :) this was the chapter I was most nervous to post so any comments are welcome!  
> Say hi on  tumblr: littlerose13writes   
> Next chapter will be up on Friday!


	9. Baby Boy

The first Quidditch match of the season was Gryffindor vs Slytherin and if Albus was nervous about his first game, he didn’t show it, until he refused to eat anything at breakfast.

“Albus, you need to eat something.” Scorpius buttered a slice of toast and arranged it neatly on a plate beside some slices of strawberry. He pushed it towards Albus who looked up at it blankly. 

“Thanks, but I’m not hungry,” he said calmly, sipping coffee. The green of his Quidditch jersey brought out the colour of his eyes, which gave away that maybe he wasn’t as collected as he was pretending to be. 

“How are you feeling?” Scorpius’ Slytherin scarf slid off the seat beside him and onto the floor. 

“Okay, slightly terrified.” Albus was still speaking in a calm and measured way, but when Scorpius slipped under the table to retrieve his scarf, he spotted Albus’ foot tapping away incessantly. “I have to do well, after what I said to Polly in Potions on Tuesday.”

Scorpius grinned. “That was the best. Want me to walk down there with you? I’ll be early for the game, but I don’t mind.” 

Albus gave him a grateful look. “Yes please. You’re good at keeping me calm.” 

Scorpius smiled and considered his words. In his head, it was Albus who kept him calm and composed. 

“How you feeling?”

“Any first game nerves?”

Albus was suddenly flanked either side by two other green Quidditch jersey-wearing shapes. Thea looped her arm through his and Cole clapped him on the back. Albus looked at each of them in turn and simply nodded in response. 

“Has he eaten anything?” Thea asked Scorpius as if Albus was a toddler he was in charge of babysitting. Albus scowled at her and pulled his arm out of hers. 

“Nope,” Scorpius responded, pushing the toast and strawberries closer to Albus. He looked down at them as if they’d offended him personally. 

“I’m not hungry.”

“I am,” Cole put in, then paused, “for a win.” He waited expectantly for a response and Scorpius laughed but he was the only one; it was exactly the sort of humour he appreciated. 

“Don’t encourage him.” Thea rolled her eyes at Cole. “Al, you really should eat some bre-”

“Fine,” Albus snapped and grabbed two slices of strawberry, stuffing them into his mouth with a defiant stare. “Happy?” 

Thea smirked. “Ecstatic.” 

Albus smiled thinly and sipped more coffee with a grumpy expression. “Why do Quidditch games have to start so early anyway?” he grumbled.

It was just like breakfast every other morning. 

“We’ll see you down there then, Al. Don’t be late.” Thea nudged him lightly. 

“As if I would turn up late to my first Quidditch game…” Albus gave Scorpius an incredulous look as his two teammates stood up to leave. 

“Morning all, good luck today.” A voice spoke behind Scorpius’ head.

“Potter,” Cole said gruffly, nodding at the speaker. 

“Flint.” Scorpius turned around to see James nodding politely back. 

“I heard you were injured?” Cole was eyeing his red Quidditch jersey up and down. Thea hit him across the arm and hissed what sounded like _shut up._

“You’ll see.” James simply smiled and Albus furrowed his brow, giving James a confused look. 

“You’re injured?” he asked his brother when Thea and Cole had left, having managed to push his breakfast away again. 

James’ expression softened and he sat down beside Scorpius. “Nah, I’m fine. Just psyching the opposition out a bit.”

“James, you know I _am_ the opposition today?” Albus drained his coffee. 

“I know. I came to wish my baby brother good luck in his first match.” He nudged Scorpius in the side. “I used to think that was his name.”

Scorpius responded with a look of confusion. “You thought what was his name?” 

“Baby Brother. I wasn’t even two yet and everyone told me I’d be getting a baby brother. That’s all anyone ever said, baby brother. So when he was born, I thought his name was Baby Brother for ages, Mum told me.” 

Scorpius laughed at this sweet story. 

“But even when she put you right, you still couldn’t say my name properly for years.” Albus looked a bit more relaxed than he had when Thea and Cole had been there. 

“Albus is a hard name to say! Even Al’s difficult when you’ve only just learnt to talk.”

“You called me _Owl_.” 

“Makes sense, that’s a word he knew,” Scorpius put in. As usual, he loved listening to the Potter brothers banter with each other. 

“You had freakishly big eyes as a child, can you blame me?” 

“Still better than _Jamesy_. Did Grandma Molly sew that onto your robes for today too, like when you were five?” 

James rolled his eyes fondly. “Saving it for the finals. Good luck Baby Boy!” He squeezed Albus’ cheek as he swung his leg over the bench and left in a whirl of red. 

“Good luck!” Albus called back to his brother, rubbing at his face where James had pinched it. 

“Did he just call you _Baby Boy?_ ” Scorpius asked in confusion, watching James’ retreating figure. 

“Childhood nickname. He was Jamesy and I was Baby Boy ‘cause Mum and Dad didn’t name me for hours after I was born. The joys of being the middle child.”

“What was Lily?”

Albus grinned. “Lily-Lu, Lilypad, Lulu, Petal, Raindrop, Pumpkin, whatever other vomit-inducing nickname Dad decided on that week.” 

“It must have been fun, growing up with a brother and sister.” 

“Aw, Scor, are you feeling left out? I’m sure I could write to your dad and find out some embarrassing stories for you too.” 

Scorpius paled at the idea, because he’d been a rather strange child and he cringed at the thought of Albus hearing some of the stories his parents had told him. 

“Joking,” Albus said hurriedly, seeing his face.

“You seem calmer about the game,” Scorpius observed.

Albus nodded. “Can you still walk down with me though, please?” 

Scorpius attempted a motivational speech on their walk to the Quidditch pitch together, but it just made Albus laugh more than anything, likely because he kept including ridiculous puns at every opportunity. 

They arrived at the changing rooms with plenty of time to spare and stood opposite each other sort of awkwardly. 

“Well, good luck.” Scorpius really wanted to hug Albus but he wasn’t sure this counted as a good enough reason. 

Luckily, Albus I-like-hugs Potter felt it was a good enough reason and he embraced Scorpius, holding on for just a second longer than usual.

He was nervous. 

“You’ll be amazing,” Scorpius said, partly obscured by his hair, and they let go of each other. 

“Thanks, Scor. See you on the other side.” He waved cheerfully enough but also looked slightly like he was walking to wrestle with a blast-ended skrewt. 

Scorpius checked the time and took a leisurely stroll around the edge of the pitch, sitting in a secluded spot and pulling a book out before he went up to the stands. As the only people he would consider friends were playing in the match, he didn’t much fancy sitting there for ages by himself waiting for the game to start. 

With only ten minutes to go, and a steady stream of students filing into the stands in the distance, Scorpius closed his book and started to make his way over. As he passed the forest edge, he was distracted by the sight of Albus’ sister, emerging from behind a large tree. 

“Lily? Shouldn’t you be in… the game starts soon!” 

Lily smiled innocently. “I know, don’t panic, Scorpius. I was just doing my pre-match yoga ritual.”

“In the Forbidden Forest?” Scorpius thought back to what Hagrid had said about Lily hanging around the forest.

“Not exactly _in_ the forest. Just near some of those trees.” She gestured vaguely to the forest edge, which didn’t reassure Scorpius much. He made a mental note to tell Albus about this after the match. 

Scorpius made it to the spectator stands just in time for the game to start. He didn’t have a very good seat, further back and halfway behind a post, but it would be fine when the game started and he could hear the commentary. As long as he could see Albus at the Slytherin hoops, it was a good seat to Scorpius. 

He scanned around the pitch, looking for the entrance the Slytherin team would be walking through any minute. As he scanned, he noticed somebody trying to catch his eye a few rows in front. It was Imogen Carlisle, one of Thea’s friends.

In response to his questioning look, she waved and beckoned him over to her, pointing excitedly at an empty seat beside her, right in the middle of the stands and providing a much better view. Scorpius checked all around him to make sure she wasn’t talking to somebody else and she rolled her eyes and beckoned again more insistently. Scorpius nodded and edged his way to the steps and round to the front row. 

“You can’t sit all the way back there!” Imogen said as he approached and Ava, who was sat beside her, smiled warmly and nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, sit with us, Scorpius.” 

“Thanks,” he said, dropping into the seat beside Imogen. 

“Is Albus nervous?” she quizzed him as soon as he sat down. “Thea’s not, but she never is.” 

“I think he is a bit.” 

A whistle blew and Hugo Granger-Weasley’s commentary began, loudly and clearly over the noisy crowds of students. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this, our first Quidditch match of the season. Always a highly anticipated event, this one, and this year even more so with current champions Slytherin taking on what some have described as their biggest rivals: Gryffindor. 

“Anyone who knows anything about the teams this year will know that they aren’t all that different to last year. James Potter’s Gryffindors boast the same lineup as last year, save for his sister Lily playing as Seeker, Krista Robins as a new Chaser for the season and new Keeper Elliot Parks. Henrik Harper’s Slytherin team is identical, apart from their Keeper is now Albus Potter. 

“Without further ado, I present to you: GRYFFINDOR.”

Doors on one side of the pitch opened and the Gryffindor Quidditch team emerged, led by James. They appeared calm and confident and, for the first time in his life, Scorpius realised he _really_ wanted Slytherin to win this match. 

“Your current Quidditch cup holders: SLYTHERIN.”

The opposite doors opened and the green-clad Slytherin team walked out with their broomsticks. The captain, Harper, didn’t take his eyes off James the whole walk to the centre of the pitch. Thea was her usual confident, almost-swaggering self and Cole had a cocky grin plastered across his face, his Beater’s bat swinging from one hand. 

Scorpius’ heart stopped when he saw Albus. 

He’d never seen his best friend in full Quidditch robes before, and there was absolutely no denying he suited them very, _very_ well. Green was Albus’ colour as it always brought out his eyes and complimented his skin tone. The robes hugged his body in all the right places and his posture wasn’t giving away any of the nerves Scorpius knew he was feeling. He stopped with the rest of the team and swept his hair back from his eyes with one hand. Scorpius internally squirmed with pleasure at how handsome he was. 

To his left, Scorpius noticed Imogen and Ava nudging each other and eyeing Albus too. He wondered if he would ever be brave enough to tell his best friend that girls in their year were looking at him like that. 

The players rose to their starting positions and the snitch and bludgers were released. Madam Hooch threw the quaffle into the air and blew her whistle shrilly. 

It was intense, watching the Chasers fight for possession of the quaffle. James and his two other Chasers worked well together, but they were evenly matched by Thea and the other two Slytherin Chasers. It took several minutes of serious passing and intercepting before Thea was close enough to aim for the Gryffindor hoops. She planted the quaffle through the centre hoop with no difficulty whatsoever. 

“Thea Jordan scores ten points for Slytherin!” 

The crowd around Scorpius cheered and he joined in, feeling proud that it was his friend who had scored the first goal of the game. 

The Gryffindor Keeper turned out to be woefully unprepared for the Slytherin Chasers, who had a very different approach to his own team. Scorpius could practically see James’ brain whirring to think of future coaching strategies he could use with his Keeper. 

Although the Keeper was floundering, the Gryffindor Chasers were smooth and swift and it wasn’t long before Krista Robins was aiming to score. She nearly did too, except Albus was quicker than she had anticipated and he saved it at the last second. 

“A fantastic save there from Albus Potter, better luck next time Robins!” 

Scorpius wondered if anyone in the noisy stands could tell he was cheering louder than he had before. 

Albus’ smile grew after that and he confidently saved several more goals. After what Scorpius suspected was a deliberate move on James’ part to let his other Chasers score against Albus first, Gryffindor scored their first goal when James planted it himself. He spared Albus a brief apologetic glance before speeding away again. 

“That’s the first goal for Gryffindor, it’s fifty - ten to Slytherin! Nice bludger work from Cole Flint, who prevents James Potter intercepting the quaffle.” 

This pattern continued and the Gryffindor Keeper was getting more and more flustered as the Slytherin Chasers scored faster than he could keep up with. With Albus’ track record of saving, it didn’t take long for Slytherin to reach two hundred points with Gryffindor trailing on only fifty. 

“Lily Potter looks like she’s seen the snitch! Has Harper noticed? Oh, yes he has, look there he goes. Lily and Henrik are each coming at what might be the snitch from different angles, don’t crash you two!” 

“If Lily catches the snitch now, it’ll be a draw!” Scorpius shouted excitedly. 

On the pitch, James seemed to have noticed what Scorpius had too. He fought his way into the middle of the game, grabbed the quaffle and hurtled towards Albus with determination. So far, Albus hadn’t managed to save any of James’ goals. He was clearly planning to score just before Lily caught the snitch, tipping Gryffindor into a narrow win. 

The entire crowd were torn between watching Lily and Harper in their pursuit of the snitch and James’ fresh attempt to score. James came at Albus so quickly, Scorpius was surprised he didn’t crash into his brother. He span the tail of his broom around with the severity of his throw, and the quaffle soared towards the hoop, straight into Albus’ outstretched hands. 

James swore audibly and immediately hovered near Thea to mark her, but it was too late and she’d already caught the quaffle Albus threw to her. Thea was tearing up the pitch, dodging a well-aimed bludger from Rose and weaving between all three of the Gryffindor Chasers. She was at the hoops in no time, planting a goal seconds before uproar broke out; Lily had caught the snitch.

“Thea Jordan scores another ten points for Slytherin, and Lily Potter catches the snitch! I don’t believe it folks, that was the tightest game I’ve ever seen, but Slytherin WINS!” 

Scorpius was cheering so loud, he felt hoarse. His two friends, his _best friend,_ had just won the first Quidditch match of the season. He’d never felt prouder in his life. As he watched the Slytherin Quidditch team in a midair group hug squashed around Thea and Albus, he couldn’t wait to go and congratulate his friend himself and he quickly beat the cheering crowd around him to run down the stands and out onto the pitch. 

The group of Slytherin Quidditch players dispersed and Albus began a slow descent towards the ground. He was waylaid by his brother flying at him in what was probably supposed to be an affectionate, congratulatory hug, but James misjudged it and sent them both headlong into the ground, James landing on top of Albus. He grinned sheepishly and hauled himself up, offering Albus a hand.

Albus winced from the ground. “Shit, James, I think you broke my ankle.”

James paled and looked around him hurriedly, catching Scorpius’ eye with a guilty expression. He knelt beside Albus and confusedly ran his gaze over his leg, looking like he didn’t know what to do with his hands. “Does it hurt?” he asked, as Scorpius knelt on Albus’ other side.

“Of course if bloody hurts, James!” Albus was breathing very quickly and Scorpius noticed his foot was at a strange angle. 

“Right, okay, I can help,” James said determinedly, pulling his sleeves back and going to grab hold of Albus’ injured ankle.

“No! Don’t move it, James. You’ll hurt him.” Scorpius surprised himself with the authority his voice had taken on. James looked up at him and nodded. 

“I’ll go and get Madam Pomfrey,” he said worriedly, “leave you in Scorpius’ capable hands.” 

James dashed off to the other side of the pitch where it didn’t look like anybody had even noticed Albus was injured. 

Albus was gasping rapidly by Scorpius’ side and he placed a hand gently on his shoulder. “Try to breathe normally,” he said, pretending he felt calm. “In through your nose, out through your mouth.”

He copied the mantra Albus had said to him so many times before until his breathing became even and deep, and he no longer looked as if he was going to pass out.

“This makes a change,” he said weakly, “you calming my breathing down.” 

Madam Pomfrey took one look at Albus’ ankle and sighed, turning to James and tutting at him. “Almost a _whole_ game with no injuries, Mr Potter.” She was speaking to James rather than Albus, which made it clear to Scorpius that James had already explained how Albus had broken his ankle. 

“Can you fix it?” Scorpius asked her desperately.

Madam Pomfrey looked at him incredulously. “Of course I can fix it.” She looked down at Albus. “This is going to hurt, Mr Potter.” 

He nodded shakily as she knelt beside him and pointed her wand at his broken ankle. “ _Episkey_ ,” she said and a horrible cracking sound filled the air as Albus yelped in pain and grabbed onto the nearest thing for support. 

The nearest thing just happened to be Scorpius’ hand. 

He squeezed it tightly and was breathing heavily again as Madam Pomfrey gingerly checked the movement in his ankle. “It’ll be a bit tender for a few hours, but you should be fine to walk. Come and see me if there’s still any pain this evening.” 

She left and James took her place, looking distinctly guilty. “Sorry, Baby Boy,” he said. “I’m just really proud of you.” 

“That’s great, James. Next time, save your pride for when I’m _not_ fifteen feet up.” Albus was still holding onto Scorpius’ hand and didn’t seem to want to let go any time soon. Scorpius felt like it had been too long, and wasn’t sure if he should initiate letting go. But it felt nice, Albus’ hand in his, and he couldn’t bring himself to. 

“Right, yep, point taken. Sorry, Al.” James extended a hand to pull Albus to his feet and Scorpius quickly withdrew his own before James spotted it. The sudden haste with which he moved his hand made Albus turn and look at him strangely for just a second before he allowed James to pull him to his feet. “How does it feel?”

Albus gingerly put weight on his foot and shrugged his shoulders. “It’s okay, just a bit sore. Probably shouldn’t run off anywhere.” 

James looked relieved and he pulled Albus into a hug. He released his brother and placed his hands atop his shoulders. “Well done, mate. Proud of you.”

Albus smiled and James hurried off to the changing rooms with the rest of the Gryffindor team. 

“Party in the common room!” Cole came barrelling over and threw an arm each around Albus and Scorpius.

They left the pitch together, passing Rose who was being congratulated by her Gryffindor friends. Polly Chapman looked away from the group and came sauntering over with a sly expression. 

“Albus Potter, the irrelevance, hasn’t anybody ever told you Slytherin Squibs don’t make good Quidditch players?” She stopped and folded her arms. 

“Go away, Polly.” Albus grumbled and tried to get away as fast as his tender ankle would allow him while Scorpius hurried after him. 

“Ouch, what an insult, Potter. Did Daddy teach you that one?” Karl Jenkins appeared behind her and spoke so scathingly, it was no surprise to see him glaring at Albus. 

“Let’s just-” Rose started to speak but Polly interrupted her. 

“I think your technique needs work, Potter.” She began a cruel but highly inaccurate impression of Albus trying to catch the quaffle. Scorpius felt Albus deflate beside him. 

“I’m not sure which game you were watching, Polly, but Slytherin just won.” Scorpius gathered every ounce of courage he had and went to pull Albus away before he had to face her response.

“Look who’s piping up now. No Thea Jordan to protect you this time, Death Eater Boy.” Karl called after him. 

“Off to polish your dark mark up?” Polly added snidely. 

“Guys, let it go.” Rose reprimanded her friends half-heartedly as Scorpius saw a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye. 

“Why don’t you just shut the fuck-“

“Albus, no!” Scorpius reacted instinctively and grabbed onto Albus’ wrist where he’d gone straight for his wand, shaking with fury. He wrenched his hand from Scorpius’ grip, still staring at Polly and Karl. 

“What’s going on?” 

It was James, who had noticed the commotion and returned from the other side of the pitch. He frowned, looking between his brother shaking with anger and Polly who looked unnerved and hid behind Karl. 

“Al?” James said softly, approaching Albus. 

“Touched a nerve.” Karl laughed unkindly at Albus who went for his wand again. James grabbed his arm this time and held him back. He gave Rose a strange look;  she was trying to mutter to her friends to leave. Albus allowed James to lead him away, shaking his head, and Scorpius hurried after them both. 

“What did they say this time?” James looked almost as angry as Albus, gripping onto his brother like his life depended on it. Albus didn’t respond and simply shook his head in fury. 

“Don’t let them ruin your first win. Polly’s talking rubbish, you were great.” Scorpius tried to change the subject. 

Albus pulled away from James and rounded on him furiously then seemed to catch himself and took a step back, breathing deeply. “That’s not what I’m pissed off about.” He spoke very carefully. “How can she speak to you like that as if she has _any_ idea what she’s talking about?” 

“I don’t care, I’m used to it.” Scorpius was very keen for Albus to calm down. 

“Well you shouldn’t have to be used to it!” Albus stopped walking and fisted his hand in his hair; James watched him warily. “I just… hate them speaking to you like that.” 

“I don’t care,” Scorpius repeated, feeling his chest balloon at Albus’ words. He was walking at a normal pace again and his breathing was evening out. 

“It’s a load of crap and everyone else has managed to move on. It was in the bloody Prophet after my dad got the Ministry to release that statement. Have you noticed nobody else apart from Polly and Karl are still going on about that stupid rumour anymore? Because they know it isn’t true!” 

Scorpius considered his words and realised he was right. “You’re right, Al! People really _are_ moving on.” 

Albus nodded with satisfaction.

“Let’s stop talking about boring old me though. I didn’t just win a Quidditch match!” 

Albus looked like he wanted to keep talking but he shrugged and followed Scorpius away from the Quidditch pitch, leaving James at the Entrance Hall to go down to the Slytherin common room. 

* * *

The common room was alive with excitement and buzzing in every corner. As current Quidditch champions, a win for the first game of the season was uplifting and promising for the rest of the year. Slytherins apparently celebrated this fact with butterbeer and sweets. 

In the past, he and Albus had hidden upstairs in the dorm when events like this took place in the common room. Last year, when Slytherin won the Quidditch cup, they’d found themselves feeling pleased about school Quidditch for the first time ever, enough to leave the dorm and sit in a corner together.

But this time was different. Albus was in high demand, and he looked a bit taken aback as people they didn’t know congratulated him on saving James’ final goal. He was currently surrounded by a gaggle of excited-looking sixth year girls, and while he appeared pleased enough, he was also throwing slightly frightened looks Scorpius’ way every few minutes, as if he wanted to be pulled away.

The trouble was, all Scorpius could think about was how much he _did_ want to pull Albus away, perhaps pin him up against the nearest wall and snog him senseless. Scorpius was yet to understand where his sudden lustiness had come from; he had no experience of snogging anybody senseless to know that was something he wanted to do to Albus, but it was undeniable. 

Albus had showered after the match and changed into his favourite green hoodie - coincidentally, also Scorpius’ favourite hoodie because it brought out his eyes so beautifully. His dark hair had dried with a bit of a wave to it, like it did sometimes, and Albus kept nervously playing with the back of it every time he spoke to someone new. It was a habit he’d only developed recently and Scorpius had reason to believe he’d picked it up from James. 

Scorpius was just starting to think that maybe he should be less obvious in staring at his best friend when he was taken by surprise by his family owl tapping on the window. Even though the Slytherin common room was partly under the lake, there was one small, south-facing window that opened out onto the grounds where the dungeons were set on a hillside. Owls sometimes delivered post to Slytherins through this window, and apparently today, Scorpius had a letter that couldn’t wait until breakfast. 

He let Hebe in and untied the letter, allowing the owl to perch on his shoulder as he recognised his dad’s handwriting. What was so important that meant his dad needed to write in the evening?

_Scorpius,  
I hope you are feeling better by the time this letter reaches you. Albus wrote to me and told me you had another panic attack this week but you weren’t planning to tell me. From the tone of his letter, I don’t think he wanted to write to me, but he’s almost as worried about you as I now am. _

_Scorpius, please remember that I’m your father and I care about you. I need you to tell me when things like that happen, I shouldn’t have to hear about it from your best friend. I’m very worried about you and even more worried that you didn’t tell me. We talked about this over the summer, but I think we need to talk again._

_I’d like to come and speak with you in person, if you’ll allow me to. I don’t want to force you, but you’re my son, I love you, and I’m worried about you. We can solve this together, but you need to talk to me._

_Please write back as soon as you can._

_I love and miss you a lot  
Dad x_

Scorpius stared at the parchment, feelings of hurt and betrayal washing over him coupled with such a strong feeling of guilt, he thought he might cry. His dad didn’t need to worry about him, he had enough to worry about and it wasn’t fair for Scorpius to make him worry more. 

As much as Scorpius loved Albus, he did have the tendency to be a bit too impulsive and jump into decisions without thinking about the consequences. Normally it was something Scorpius admired about him, but this? He thought Albus would have had more sense. 

Hebe seemed to sense his mood and took off back through the window hurriedly. Scorpius closed it shut behind her and, shaking slightly, his heart beating fast, strode across the common room back to Albus.

“What were you thinking, Albus?” he demanded, brandishing the letter as soon as he found him not far from the fireplace. The common room was still loud and busy, but less than it had been when the party was in full swing. 

Immediately, Albus adopted a distinctly guilty expression but he defiantly folded his arms across his chest and stared Scorpius down. “He needed to know. You weren’t going to tell him and you need help, Scorpius.” His eyes were soft and gentle but his expression was hard and defensive. 

“Don’t you think that might be up to me to decide? I’m not so out of my mind I can’t think for myself, Albus! It was just a stupid panic attack, I’m not about to be sectioned.” He didn’t care that other people could hear him as he raised his voice. 

Albus glanced around and pulled Scorpius further into the corner of the room by his wrist so that they both fell into a large armchair. “Your dad would want you to tell him.”

Scorpius couldn’t even look at Albus; this statement made him utterly furious. How on earth would Albus know what his dad would or wouldn’t want? Albus had very little idea what things were really like between Draco and Scorpius when it came down to big, serious stuff like this. 

“Actually, I don’t think he would,” he said very quietly, but Albus heard him. He stiffened beside him.

“What do you mean?” 

Scorpius turned to face his best friend, anger still ebbing through him. “It’s alright for you. You fixed everything with your dad and now things are great between you two. It’s not like that for me. I can’t talk to him about stuff like this, he’s in enough pain.” 

Albus stared at him, calculating and taking in what Scorpius had said. He shook his head firmly, his expression shifting to one of deep thought and what could have been hurt. 

Finally, Albus broke the silence. “Things with my dad are not _fixed_ or _great_.” 

“Albus, I visited you over the summer, remember? I saw you together,” Scorpius sighed, remembering the lighthearted and fatherly way Harry had been with Albus. 

“I could say the same thing to you!” 

Scorpius didn’t reply, mainly because he didn’t know what to say. 

“You saw what I wanted you to see,” Albus muttered. “Things are definitely better between us, I can’t deny that. We haven’t shouted at each other in a long time. I suppose I’ve grown up a bit, realised it’s not his fault I get picked on at school. We still argue a lot though, we’re arguing right now if truth be told.” 

Scorpius was distracted from asking what Albus was arguing with his father about by this admittance which he took in with some surprise. He had never considered the fact that Albus was actively blaming Harry for the way he’d been treated by his peers. Through the first few years of school, when the Son of Voldemort rumour had plagued him constantly, it had never once occurred to him that it was Draco’s fault, that his father was choosing to let Scorpius live in misery. In fact, his father _had_ tried to stop the source of the bullying, and he’d fought for Scorpius and Albus when Harry banned them from seeing each other. 

“Things with my dad go beyond stupid school bullies,” Scorpius said shortly, feeling like Albus’ perspective on the situation was flawed. Because he still had his mum, he didn’t have to pretend he couldn’t hear his father crying. “He didn’t need to know.”

Albus looked pained. “Scorpius, I’m _trying_ to do the right thing here. This isn’t some small thing you can brush under the carpet, it’s really… I can’t tell you how… Do you know how scary it is, having to watch you shaking like mad and struggling to breathe?”

Scorpius felt his face flame and he leapt from the armchair, staring down at Albus and folding his arms defensively across his chest. “Oh well I _am_ sorry that it’s so difficult for you. Next time, feel free to just leave me and go off and write to my dad instead so you don’t have to watch.” 

Albus gasped and he looked desperate, reaching up and trying to pull him back down. “Scorpius, I would _never_ leave you. That’s not what I meant. Shit, I don’t know how to explain this to you.” He covered his face with his hand in an anguished action. 

“Explain what?” Scorpius had unfolded his arms but he was still reluctant to sit with Albus. 

“Just stop being so difficult, Scorpius! Let me help you!” Albus gave up trying to pull him down and stood up too. 

“I’m sorry that you find it so _difficult_ of me to have panic attacks all the time. Believe me, I wish I wasn’t having them either.” Scorpius couldn’t even look at Albus, unable to believe his best friend was being so insensitive. 

“Then ask for help! Tell your dad, let him help you. I’m sure you have some fancy, private Malfoy doctor who knows a spell or whatever and can do a much better job than I can at helping you.”

Scorpius agonised over what he was about to say, staring into the fire without really seeing it. Eventually, he spoke and raised his head. “Nobody can help me more than you-”

Albus wasn’t there anymore. The door to the common room swung shut loudly, as if the person who had used it had slammed it closed. Scorpius collapsed down onto the armchair, staring at the floor and feeling numb. He and Albus hardly ever argued, and they’d definitely never argued over something like this. 

“Scorpius? Are you okay?” Ava sat down gently beside him and her expression made it clear that she had noticed him and Albus arguing. “Did you and Albus have an argument?” 

He didn’t particularly feel like divulging the intricacies of the conversation he and Albus had just had so he just nodded shortly. “It’s fine, it’s nothing really.”

“I know it’s none of my business, but if it wasn’t nothing-”

“Honestly, it’s okay. But thank you.” Scorpius cut her off and forced himself to smile, picking furiously at the skin around his thumbnail as he did so. 

Ava paused like she didn’t know what to say. “Do you want me to go and get Thea?” 

Thea would want to know exactly what had happened and then would likely attempt to orchestrate some kind of mediation session between him and Albus. He couldn’t really think of anything more awkward. 

“No, it’s alright. I’m just going to… go.”

He stood up to leave, walking slowly to the dorm and thinking the whole time. He had no idea what to do now. The last time they’d argued, it hadn’t been nearly this bad and then everything became sort of overshadowed by turning time. With this in mind, he lay flat down on his bed, still fully dressed and stared at the ceiling, running through his feelings in his mind and allowing his suppressed tears to silently fall. 

He felt guilty because now his dad was exceptionally worried about him. On top of that, he felt disappointed that Albus had gone behind his back. Surely Albus owed him an apology? Or had he put Albus in a difficult position by refusing to tell his dad in the first place? 

It wasn’t late, but Scorpius drew the hangings around his bed and changed into pyjamas, finding his favourite book and starting it again from the beginning until he’d stopped crying. 

Much later, he heard Albus come in, felt his footsteps approach Scorpius’ bed and stop. Scorpius held his breath, wondering if he could pretend to be asleep already. Albus must have thought better of it because the footsteps shuffled away again and Scorpius heard the sound of Albus’ bed hangings pulling open and then closed again. 

Scorpius hugged the book to his chest, feeling like the silence of the dorm was pressing in on him, and prayed to every god he knew that he wouldn’t have another nightmare.  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Told you the angst starts here...  
> Thoughts? Did Albus do the right thing?  
> Thanks go to Marina and Beks for beta-ing :) and thanks to everyone who’s been leaving comments and making me grin like an idiot in public!  
> See you on Monday!  
> Or sooner on  tumblr: littlerose13writes  (also can someone let me know if that link is working please?)


	10. A Touch Overdramatic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains descriptions of a panic attack.

The Slytherin common room was empty. It was so early in the morning, it was really still night time. Scorpius didn’t feel tired one bit. 

Only one person was in the common room when he got there, and as soon as he saw Scorpius, Albus started speaking. 

“Do you know how scary it is, having to watch you shaking like mad and struggling to breathe? Just stop being so difficult! It’s so annoying that I have to hang around and pretend to be your friend still just because you’re a complete nutcase.”

Scorpius was rooted to the spot. “Albus, please… do you really mean that?” 

“I’m bored of pretending, goodbye Scorpius. Have a nice life.” 

He watched his best friend walk away from him, laughing loudly, and felt his heart sink. His only friend, his best friend, didn’t want anything to do with him anymore. 

“Maybe you should give him your Prefect badge,” said Thea, who had appeared by his side. “I’ve always preferred Albus to you anyway.” 

“I’ll make you a Prefect, Scorpius.” 

“Dad?” Scorpius turned around, surprised to hear his dad’s voice in the Slytherin common room. “How can you make me a Hogwarts Prefect?”

“Oh you won’t be going to Hogwarts anymore. You’re coming to live at home where I can keep an eye on you, after you didn’t tell me about your panic attack. At least Albus had enough sense to tell me. He’d make a much better son than you.” 

“You’re expelled anyway, Scorpius!” Professor McGonagall looked fierce and mean as she pointed at him. 

“And don’t even think about buying any more ice creams from me, Scorpius Malfoy,” Florean Fortescue yelled across the room and Scorpius hung his head. 

He couldn’t take everyone looking at him with such disappointment and he turned and ran back to his dorm, but his movements were slow and jerky and he jogged on the spot for several seconds, unable to move. He knew they were all behind him, jeering, but his body wouldn’t cooperate and allow him to leave. 

It was getting darker and his eyelids felt stiff and uncomfortable. A sudden clattering noise startled him and he blinked in confusion, taking in the bed sheets tangled around him. The clattering noise had been his alarm clock falling to the floor where he’d batted at it in his sleep. The sun was coming up, he was warm and comfortable, his heart was heavy. He was dreaming. 

Scorpius checked in with his breathing but it was steady and slow. His heartbeat wasn’t rapid or out of rhythm. The dream had been unpleasant, but he didn’t have that sick, scared feeling his nightmares gave him. The weight in his heart came from the realities of the night before washing over him: the hurtful words Albus had said, the way Albus had betrayed him, the way he’d just left. 

Although he was awake early, a small peek out of his hangings confirmed that Albus wasn’t in the dormitory. His earphones were missing from his music box, as were his trainers, and Scorpius could only assume he’d gone running again.

He pulled himself out of bed, dressing for the day miserably and going back and forth over why he felt so miserable. He felt like a burden more than anything, the reality of how much Albus had done for him sinking in, but his guilt also gave way to anger. Albus didn’t have to help him, he could choose not to, and he could also have chosen not to write to his dad. 

Scorpius didn’t see Albus all morning, and it became very obvious very quickly that his best friend was avoiding him. He tried to distract himself with Muggle Studies homework, and when that was finished, a tricky Potions essay on the Dragon Pox cure. Thea hovered around him, hinting heavily that she knew where Albus was if he was interested and frequently disappearing, presumably to speak to him. Albus could come and find him if he wanted to apologise, Scorpius wasn’t going to inconvenience him anymore.

The first time he saw Albus was at lunch, where Albus went and sat with two sixth years who were both on the Quidditch team with him; Scorpius had never spoken to them. 

“Why don’t you just go and say sorry?”

Scorpius goggled at Thea. “I have nothing to say sorry for!” 

Thea shrugged. “I don’t know what’s happened, just a suggestion. You’re clearly both miserable without each other.”

Scorpius shook his head stubbornly. “I am _not_ miserable. I can do plenty well enough without Albus, thanks.” 

“That’s funny, he said the same thing about you, in the same I-am-clearly-lying tone of voice too.” Thea sounded vaguely bored, as if she was more than over flitting between the two of them, which she probably was. 

“He can come and speak to me then.”

“Why don’t you write him a letter?”

“ _No_.” 

“What do you want to happen, Scorpius? You can’t stay like this, stubbornly refusing to acknowledge the other’s existence.”

“Why can’t we?”

“Because it’s you two.” Thea acted as if this were enough of an explanation. “What do you want to happen?”

Scorpius hesitated. “I want Albus to-”

He broke off, realising that he didn’t even need or want Albus to apologise for what he’d said, or even for writing to his dad. Nothing he’d said wasn’t true, even if he wasn’t the most tactful, and he’d been trying to help in writing to his dad. 

_I don’t want him to be right. This all started because I didn’t want to worry my dad too much, but all I’ve done is worry my best friend. I want to be normal._

It dawned on Scorpius that maybe, just maybe, he’d somewhat flown off the handle and perhaps it wasn’t Albus he was cross with at all. 

“I have to go, sorry, Thea. Thanks for trying to help.” 

He hadn’t eaten anything, but he couldn’t sit there any longer. 

The library was Scorpius’ safe place and he holed himself up in one of the furthest, lesser known alcoves. Albus knew about this place, but he wasn’t likely to seek Scorpius out so he could guarantee some peace and quiet while he worked this whole mess out. 

He didn’t know how long he’d been there, a few hours maybe, when his sanctuary was invaded by an owl swooping in from a nearby window and hopping neatly about with a letter for him, this time, in a handwriting he didn’t recognise. 

_Dear Scorpius,  
I hope you don’t mind me writing to you out of the blue like this. I received a letter from Al last night, and seeing as getting post from Albus is like getting dragon blood from a moonstone, I knew something was wrong. _

_He hasn’t told me what he did exactly, just that he told your father something that wasn’t his to tell and he regrets it now. Without knowing the full story, I can’t really say a lot, but trust me when I say that I gave him a bit of a telling off for interfering like that. Just know, Scorpius, whatever he did, he meant well. He would never try to hurt you. Al has a tendency to let his heart work faster than his brain. When he was about four, he was playing with his brother and James accidentally broke the lamp in his bedroom. Albus was so worried James would get into trouble that he went and broke his own lamp too before he’d even thought it through. That’s just what Albus does; act first and think about it afterwards. It sounds like he didn’t think at all with you. I’m not excusing what he did, but trying to explain what might have been going through his mind._

_I hope that the two of you can resolve this and that whatever is upsetting you gets better. I care about you a lot too, Scorpius, and I hate the thought of you two not talking._

_Apologies again for this slightly random letter, please don’t feel like you even have to reply._

_Lots of love,  
Ginny Potter_

Scorpius felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes as he read the letter through again and folded it back up carefully. He wasn’t sure if they were because of that motherly love he always felt from Ginny or if it was the image of Albus writing to his mum because he didn’t know what else to do. 

“I thought I’d find you here,” a voice said very quietly. “Mum wrote to you too then, she said she would.”

Albus had a sheepish grin on his face and he held up his own letter in Ginny’s handwriting. 

“Can I sit down? I want to explain.”

Scorpius slid his books and parchment across to make a space. “Depends what you’re going to explain.” 

“Explain the way I’m feeling. You know I’m rubbish at that.” Albus sank down into the chair, staring into the distance. “And I have something to tell you.” 

“Why did you write to my dad without telling me?” Scorpius knew that the best chance he had of understanding was to ask Albus outright why he’d gone behind Scorpius’ back. Albus gazed up at him unblinking, as if willing Scorpius to understand where he couldn’t find the words. 

“I feel like it’s my fault,” Albus whispered after a long pause, “that you’re ill.” 

“I’m _not_ ill. I’m _fine_.” Scorpius went to stand up but Albus held onto his arm, preventing him from doing so. 

“You _are_ fine. But you’re also ill, Scor. And I did that to you, with my stupid, reckless decisions last year. I put you through hell, things most people wouldn’t even be able to imagine. I did that to you, it was my fault, and now you’re suffering because of it. Because of me.” His eyes were sparkling and he eventually let go of Scorpius’ arm. “It should be me. It was my fault, my stupid fault. I should be the one having panic attacks, not you.”

Scorpius felt like the floor had been pulled out from beneath him. Had Albus been feeling this guilty the entire time? Had Scorpius made his feelings of guilt worse by asking Albus to help calm him down? 

“It’s _not_ your fault, Albus. I would never blame you for any of this.” He turned in his chair so he was facing Albus head on. Albus was staring down at his lap, his hands twisted together. Scorpius placed his hands on Albus’ knees, willing him to look up, but he stared resolutely down. 

“I’m sorry I told your dad,” he muttered to his knees. 

“Albus, please look at me.” Albus lifted his head, his eyes were red and swimming with tears. One fell down his cheek and he wiped at it in frustration. It took a lot to make Albus cry, not like Scorpius who had once teared up at an injured pygmy puff in Care of Magical Creatures. 

“I’m sorry, Scor,” he repeated, allowing a second tear to fall. “I’m sorry I wrote to your dad without asking you, and I’m sorry that I did this to you.” 

“I didn’t know you felt so… responsible.” As Scorpius spoke, he realised he was on the verge of tears again himself. He squeezed the tops of Albus’ legs. “It isn’t your fault at all. I wish I didn’t get like this, I wish I could just go back to normal, but I’ve never once felt this was something you’ve done to me. I’m sorry if I’ve made you feel that way ever.”

“I’m worried about you,” Albus admitted, his eyes still spilling over with tears. “And your dad worries about you too, and I just thought, if that was me and I was at home and you were here and you were suffering, I’d want to know about it.”

He stared off into the distance for a second, rubbing at his eyes furiously, as if trying to undo his tears. Both his hands fell to his lap, and he jumped in surprise when they landed on Scorpius’ own hands, as if he hadn’t noticed Scorpius had been touching him. Scorpius hastily removed them.

“I think… Scorpius, I think you should see someone. Someone to help you.” Albus had stopped crying and looked very serious. 

Scorpius sighed. “The idea is terrifying.” 

“It wouldn’t… it wouldn’t be that bad,” Albus was giving him a desperate look. 

“Wouldn’t it?” Scorpius raised one eyebrow. 

“No.” Albus said very quietly. “Um, I’ve never told you this before, I just couldn’t, I don’t know. It’s not that I didn’t…”

“Albus.”

“Alright, just know that I’ve been wanting to tell you this for a while. I actually told myself I would tell you if this happened again, so I suppose it’s time.” He straightened up in his chair. “Last year, after the thing, I wasn’t handling things all that well, you remember.”

“The nightmares,” Scorpius nodded sadly. “Your dreamless sleep potion used to make you sleep talk.” 

“Yeah, well, the dreamless sleep potion was only a temporary fix. I started seeing a therapist, for a few months, until I could sleep normally again without the potion. She’s one of Victoire’s bosses.” Scorpius hadn’t even realised he’d reached out again and placed his hand on top of Albus’ knee until Albus looked down at it gratefully. “Remember when I used to have extra Arithmancy tutoring?” 

Scorpius nodded. “You didn’t?”

“No, I was seeing my therapist. Mum and Dad arranged it with McGonagall so she could come to school. Nobody knew, not even James or Lily.” 

“Not even me,” Scorpius couldn’t help but add sadly in a whisper.

“I’m sorry, you had so much going on, and I felt horribly guilty about it all, even more than I do now. I was going to tell you after the first one, but I just couldn’t burden you further with all of my problems when you had enough of your own. Then I stopped needing to see her and I felt even worse that I was so much better and you were still suffering. I knew your dad had spoken to you about getting help, it wasn’t my place to say anything more. I just wanted to be there for you.” 

Scorpius took all this information in with some difficulty. Of course he’d known therapists existed, but he’d never thought of himself as being someone who needed to see one, and he’d definitely never thought Albus was seeing a therapist. The possibility that somebody might be able to make him back to how he was before everything happened seemed too good to be true, but here was Albus telling him his success story. 

And if Scorpius wanted to get better too, he’d need his dad on side, however much it would pain him to do it. 

“Albus, I’m really glad you got the help you needed. I think you’re right; it’s something I should ask Dad to help me look in to.” 

“You’re not annoyed I didn’t tell you sooner?” Albus’ voice was full of doubt. 

“No, I think I understand why you didn’t. Albus, I’m sorry for reacting so badly yesterday. I just feel so guilty for worrying my dad when I know he isn’t okay as it is. You were trying to help and I’m sorry I said what I said.” 

“No, Scor, _I’m_ sorry. I was completely tactless in the things I said too. You know I want you to get better for you, not so I don’t have to help you anymore. That came out so wrong.”

“It had been quite a dramatic day,” Scorpius said. “Is your ankle alright now?”

Albus shrugged. “Yeah, it’s fine, and James owes me a favour, so…” 

Scorpius grinned as he twisted his hands awkwardly and there was a pause, before Albus threw himself forwards and hugged Scorpius. It wasn’t their usual, platonic hug. There was more meaning behind this hug, it felt more like that first ever time Albus had embraced him on the train in fourth year. Scorpius held on tightly, feeling hugely comforted by the gesture. 

Albus’ chin rested on his shoulder and Scorpius breathed in the familiar, coconut-like smell of his hair, before he realised that was weird and immediately stopped. “I should have asked you first, but I knew you wouldn’t let me tell him.” 

“You’re right, I wouldn’t,” Scorpius chuckled weakly, pulling away and facing Albus. “He wants to come up here and see me.” 

Albus sniffed and nodded. “Makes sense, he wants to see you’re alright. Are you going to let him?”

Scorpius thought about how much Albus was worrying about him, and then he thought about his dad at home, relatively in the dark about the whole thing until Albus’ letter shattered that illusion. Guilt twisted inside of him when he thought about how much his dad had tried to help over the summer. How his still grief-stricken father had wanted nothing more than to be able to help Scorpius the way Albus did, because he knew that’s what Scorpius needed. 

“Yes, I’m going to let him,” he whispered and Albus beamed through his watery eyes.  

“Excellent, your dad’s the best.” 

“Don’t let your dad hear you say that,” Scorpius grinned. 

“And the next Hogsmeade is the day before your birthday!” Albus suddenly looked like an excited five-year-old. “Get him to come up then.” 

Scorpius smirked at Albus. “Shall I ask him to bring balloons and party hats?” 

Albus looked like he wasn’t sure if Scorpius was joking or not. Meanwhile, Scorpius pictured the three of them sat in The Three Broomsticks with a birthday cake and candles, absurdly discussing Scorpius’ panic attacks.

What was he even going to say to his dad? _Hi Dad, sometimes I feel like I’m going to stop breathing and die and when that happens, only Albus can really calm me down. I have no way of predicting when it’s going to happen and no idea why it happens when it does, I suppose it’s just a lifelong affliction I will have to carry around with me._

That seemed like grounds for Dad to really pull him out of Hogwarts and teach him at home. 

“Albus?” His eyes widened slightly at Scorpius’ change in tone. “Could we maybe also drop in on Victoire? I think it’s time.”

Albus smiled and patted the top of Scorpius’ hand. “I’ll write to her tonight.” 

“Excellent.” Scorpius smiled and resisted the urge to hug Albus again. “So tell me about this lamp you broke when you were four.”

Scorpius waved his letter from Ginny around and Albus rolled his eyes. 

* * *

When the next Hogsmeade weekend came round, Albus and Scorpius planned to spend their morning like normal, enjoying all the village had to offer, but then they were meeting up with Scorpius’ father and Albus’ cousin Victoire. The thought of this group meeting to talk about Scorpius made him squirm, but Albus was going to be there and Albus would make sure it was okay.

They’d had a fun morning, spending too much money in Honeydukes and coming away from _Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes_ with various free samples courtesy of Albus’ Uncle Ron. 

“It’s going to be alright, you know. This thing.” Albus spoke reassuringly as they paced down the high street together. Scorpius could only swallow and nod in response. “Vic’s really nice and she won’t push you into talking about anything you don’t wan-”

Albus stopped talking and cleared his throat significantly. 

“Vic’s not who you’re worried about, is she.” 

“Nope.” Scorpius slowed down as they reached their destination. 

Albus cast around him for an idea. “Okay, if you need to stop, give me a signal and I’ll pretend to faint or something.”

Scorpius managed a weak chuckle. “Maybe a touch overdramatic. Come on, before I change my mind.” He pushed open the door and Albus followed him. 

Victoire had asked Scorpius if he would prefer to meet somewhere public like the Three Broomsticks or at her flat, where she lived with Teddy above his shop. After picturing the two, Scorpius decided a quiet room, empty apart from the four of them, would be far more uncomfortable than a bustling pub. 

Over in a far corner, he could see his dad already sat down and talking gravely to Victoire, who was smiling pleasantly at him and swirling a straw around a glass of something. She was pointing to a piece of parchment on the table between them and his dad had a quill in his hand, occasionally scribbling things down. Scorpius knew they were probably talking about him and he took a deep breath as they weaved in and out of the busy tables. 

Draco looked up and, spotting Scorpius, smiled warmly and stood up to greet them both. He slid the parchment from the table as he did so, tucking it away into a pocket of his robes. 

“Dad!” He was almost surprised to find how pleased he was to see his dad. He looked well, nothing like the awful picture Scorpius sometimes imagined of his dad wondering the empty halls of Malfoy Manor, lonely and grieving. 

“Scorpius.” Dad pulled him into a hug and Scorpius was vaguely aware of Albus and Victoire greeting each other. “It’s good to see you.” 

Dad held him at arm’s length and appraised him with that same smile. He brushed a non-existent speck from Scorpius’ shoulder and smoothed his hair down with one hand.

They all sat down around the circular table and Albus had a very serious expression on his face as he shared a curt nod with Draco. Scorpius felt a bit like he was at a parents evening to discuss his terrible behaviour. Both his dad and Albus looked as if they were about to plan funeral arrangements. Victoire was the total opposite, and greeted Scorpius warmly, as if they met up for drinks together all the time. She seemed incredibly relaxed, and her calming presence set a precedent for the rest of them.

“I’m so glad you wanted to meet with me,” she said, like it was a great honour to spend her weekend in a Hogsmeade pub with her cousin and two Malfoys. 

“Thank you for giving up your Saturday for me.” Scorpius smiled nervously. 

“It’s no trouble. You’re rescuing me from dissertation hell and trying to convince Teddy to take a lunch break.” She laughed lightly. 

“Still, thanks.”

“I hope I can help you.” 

Draco retrieved two butterbeers from somewhere and placed one each in front of him and Albus. “Scorpius, why didn’t you tell me things had got this bad?” His dad didn’t sound annoyed or even upset, his tone was more one of confusion, as if he just couldn’t comprehend why Scorpius hadn’t told him. 

“I didn’t want to worry you.” Scorpius spoke to the table top. 

“I’m your dad, it’s my job to worry about you.” 

He braved a glance upwards. Draco was looking at him in sincere concern. 

“Things aren’t _this bad_. Most of the time I’m completely fine, aren’t I, Albus?” He turned to his best friend, asking with his eyes for Albus to reassure his father. 

Albus looked like he didn’t want to reassure Draco. He shrugged. “Most of the time. It’s the small times when you’re not that we’re worried about.”

“Scorpius,” Victoire started gently, “if you feel able to, could you describe what happens to you when you experience an attack? You can stop at any time.”

Scorpius swallowed and nodded, feeling safe enough to talk about it. He focused only on Victoire while he spoke; after all, this was going to hurt his dad a lot more than it was going to hurt him. 

“I can’t breathe. Something takes hold of me, suddenly, like I’m being dunked into icy water and I find it really difficult to catch my breath. It’s like I’m gasping and gasping but it won’t hit the back of my lungs. My heart beats so fast and it’s loud too, I can hear it in my ears. Sometimes my vision blacks out, but I can still hear. I don’t really know what happens then, because all I can focus on is trying to breathe again.”

“He shakes, and he… normally, he can’t hold himself up anymore, and his legs give way. I always try to catch him so he doesn’t fall badly.” Albus was looking apologetic. 

“Is there anything that helps you gain a sense of yourself faster?” Victoire asked gently. 

Scorpius hesitated. “Yes, if I can hear Albus’ voice. He talks to me until my vision comes back, and then we count, and I try to breathe in time with the counting. Eventually, my breath catches and I remember where I am. It gets better then, but it exhausts me.” 

“It has to be Albus’ voice?” 

Scorpius glanced at his dad, who was looking heartbroken. “No, Dad helped me once over summer. Every other time it’s been Albus.”

“Because we’ve been at school every other time,” Albus said hurriedly, as if he was worried Draco was going to be offended.  

“Is there any kind of pattern? Something that happens before which might be triggering the attacks?” Draco brushed Albus’ comment off and questioned Scorpius. Victoire gave him a worried look as if she didn’t approve of that question. 

“Maybe now’s not the time to-”

“Yes. It’s okay, I can talk about it.” He nodded reassuringly at Victoire and she smiled, then he turned back to his dad. “When I have a nightmare. The next day, I’m more likely to…”

He tailed off at the look on his dad’s face. 

“You’re having nightmares again?” He sounded as if he’d just been informed Scorpius wasn’t planning to ever come home again. “About… what happened?”

Scorpius nodded. “Only sometimes! Very, very infrequently.” 

His dad’s jaw was set. “A potion for dreamless sleep. If he can’t have nightmares, he won’t have panic attacks.”

“Draco,” Victoire spoke gently, “that’s not going to address the issue. This isn’t something we can fix with a potion. Just because we’re wizards, doesn’t mean we aren’t human and humans who’ve been through terrible ordeals need to heal. Scorpius, it sounds like you’re suffering with a form of post-traumatic stress disorder, which is causing you to have nightmares and panic attacks.”

Scorpius cycled through the words _post-traumatic stress disorder_ in his head, processing what they meant. “How do I get better?”

“There’s no quick fix, it takes time and it’s good to talk.”

His dad took a deep breath in.

“Will I ever go back to normal?” he questioned, feeling childish for asking. 

“No such thing as normal,” Albus muttered. 

Victoire laughed. “Albus is right. I can’t promise or guarantee anything, but from what you’ve both told me, it sounds like your panic attacks are a direct response to the trauma you’ve experienced. In theory, if you’re no longer affected as much by the trauma, the panic attacks and the nightmares should stop.” 

When Victoire started talking, Scorpius saw his father visibly relax. Draco had sensed what he had too: this was somebody who knew what they were talking about. 

“Then how do I get over the trauma?”

“Talking helps, a lot. Talk about it as much as you feel you can and to whoever you feel comfortable doing so. It might be a friend or family member, maybe you want to speak to somebody neutral. You could also speak to a professional.” 

Scorpius noticed the quickly-hidden pained expression on his father’s face, silently asking the question both of them knew was coming. Could Scorpius talk to him? About _everything_ , including Mum? 

“I’m not qualified yet, but my supervisor at school is excellent. She was the Healer who saw a need for our department and she’s great. She mainly uses techniques from the muggle world. There’s something called Cognitive Behavioural Therapy muggles use to treat things like PTSD. It’s one of the most effective.”

“What does it involve?” his dad asked worriedly. Scorpius wondered if he too was put off by the word _Behavioural_ , which made him think of training an animal. 

“Essentially, it’s talking. Talking and thinking and visualising the feelings you associate with your trauma, so eventually you can detach yourself from them. I’ll give you my supervisor’s details, you can think about it. In the meantime, _talk_.” 

“What do you think, Scorpius?” Dad asked.

Scorpius imagined talking through his nightmares with a stranger, talking about his feelings for _Albus_ with a stranger. “Er, maybe.” 

“Like I said, think about it. For today, I can give you some relaxation and meditation exercises you can do before you go to sleep. They’re not foolproof but they help with dreamless sleep.”

“Dreamless sleep sounds wonderful,” Scorpius replied. Even when they weren’t nightmares, his dreams tended to be somewhat confusing and strange, often involving him confessing his feelings for Albus then his best friend disappearing. 

Victoire talked them through some further techniques to help Scorpius ground himself in the future and Albus listened intently, clearly preparing himself to use them one day. The conversation about Scorpius’ mental health came to a natural end and there was an awkward pause where nobody knew what to say. 

“Why don’t I buy us all lunch?” Draco offered. 

Despite the oddness of their party, lunch was pleasant and companionable. Being able to have such a warm experience with his dad was brightening Scorpius’ mood far more than he thought possible. By the time they left the pub, he was fizzing with happiness. 

Victoire gave him a warm hug and, as she pulled away, she rested her hands on the tops of his arms. “If you ever need anything, or want to talk about anything, anything at all, our owl goes out hunting every night and normally makes it as far as Hogwarts. She’ll check up on you if you need to send me anything.” 

“Thanks, Victoire, so much, for all of this.” He gestured around him, as if he were thanking her for building The Three Broomsticks. 

“You’re very welcome,” she replied, and moved on to say goodbye to Albus. 

“We’ll get through this, Scorpius.” Dad pulled him into a hug and kissed the top of his hair. “I love you so much, I’m so proud of you.”

His dad turned from hugging him and faced Albus, who seemed to know what Draco wanted to do before he gave any indication to it. They hugged too, just briefly, and Draco placed his hands atop Al’s shoulders. 

“Thank you, Albus, for looking after my son. He’s so lucky to have a friend like you.” 

Albus blushed and shuffled his feet around. “Thanks,” he murmured. 

“Oh, I almost forgot.” Draco reached inside his cloak and withdrew a small package. “Happy birthday, Scorpius. You don’t have to wait until tomorrow to open it.” 

Scorpius beamed and took the present, gently edging the paper away and unwrapping the gift. Inside was a beautifully ornate set of books titled _Healing Through Magical History_ and Scorpius nearly dropped them in excitement. Everyone knew these books were on the reading list for Healer school, and this looked like an original set.

“Wow, Dad! Thanks!” Scorpius couldn’t keep the smile off his face and he went to hug his dad, but he held his hand up. 

“Wait, I’ve got you one more thing too.” He handed Scorpius another present, this one much smaller and narrower. Albus reached out to hold the books for him and he weighed them up in his hands, looking impressed. 

Scorpius unwrapped the second present and inside was a pair of tickets to an Arrows game in December.

“It’s been too long since I’ve taken you to a Quidditch game. Happy birthday, Scorpius.”

This time it was Scorpius who initiated their hug and he squeezed his father gratefully. Because the Arrows tickets were more than just a fun present; they were like going back to how things used to be between them.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are starting to lighten up a little bit now :) what did you think of Albus’ confession?   
> Thanks as always to the wonderful Beks and Marina for all the support :) also thanks to cherrydore for  this  beautiful art of a scene in chapter 8 :)   
> Come and say hello on  tumblr: littlerose13writes  (Speaking of tumblr, apologies to anyone who read that sentence Draco says in the dream. It was way out of context, that one word WIP guessing game is a wild one!)


	11. Happy Birthday

“Scor. Scorpius!” 

Scorpius blinked sleepily into the darkness, feeling entirely unhappy with the amount of sleep he’d had and wondering why on earth he was being woken at such a ridiculous hour. 

Albus’ grinning face loomed down over him. “Happy birthday.”

Scorpius groaned and stuffed his face into his pillow, then immediately removed it and eyed his best friend. “It’s just gone midnight, hasn’t it.” 

“Yep,” said Albus, inviting himself to sit on top of Scorpius’ bedspread and pulling the curtains closed behind him. He was wearing a well-loved Holyhead Harpies t-shirt and pyjama bottoms with socks on his feet even though he looked wide awake, as though he hadn’t been to bed yet. Scorpius knew just-woken-up Albus well and his eyes were far too bright right now. 

As he fully woke up, Scorpius started to appreciate the scene before him: Albus in his bed. Well, not in his bed but on top of it. They sat on top of each other’s beds all the time, but that was always when they were fully clothed. At that moment, Scorpius was in just a t-shirt and very aware of it. He was very glad his duvet hadn’t slipped down in his sleep and exposed him, turning Albus’ birthday surprise into a hideous embarrassment. 

“You’re officially sixteen. How’s it feel?” Albus crossed his legs beneath him and Scorpius stared up at him, unable to concentrate on anything other than the fact that there was only a thin layer of fabric between Albus and his naked lower half. 

“About the same as fifteen,” he said in an even, measured voice. 

“Anyway, I have your present. It can’t wait ‘til morning.” Albus scrambled to get off the bed and Scorpius realised he was expecting him to leap up and follow instantly.

“Um, Al,” he felt himself turn Gryffindor-red. “I’m not… wearing anything… under-”

“Oh!” Albus gasped and leapt from the bed like it was infested with doxies. “Um, sorry, I’ll just… wait out here.” 

He was gone in a whirl of hangings and Scorpius breathed out silently. He scrabbled around in his bed until he found his own pyjama bottoms crumpled at the foot of the bed where he’d kicked them off. When he’d pulled them back on, he steeled himself to open his hangings and pretend he hadn’t just been half nude within inches of his best friend. 

Albus was waiting patiently from his own bed and he threw something soft in Scorpius’ direction, which he caught in both hands. It was dove-grey and fluffy between his fingers; a knitted jumper. 

“You’ll want that, it’s cold.” Albus had pulled on a jumper of his own (navy blue with a small, white A in the top corner) and was stood smiling excitedly. He had a backpack on his back. 

“Cold? Albus, are we leaving the dorm?”

Albus simply nodded. “Trust me.” 

Scorpius tried not to think about what had happened the last time he’d trusted Albus with a rule-breaking scheme as he dubiously followed him down to the common room. The grey jumper belonged to Albus, who was shorter than Scorpius but with broader shoulders, and it hung cosily around his thin frame, exposing an inch of the bottom of his t-shirt. 

Once in the common room, Albus swung the backpack around and pulled something out of it. He surreptitiously looked around him, even though nobody was ever around after midnight (except during exam season). “Come closer.”

He shuffled closer, recognising as he did what Albus was holding in his hands. “No way!”

Albus unrolled it and swung it around his shoulders, looking smug as his entire body disappeared before his eyes. “Yep. Legitimately borrowed with permission this time.” 

“James lent it to you?” Scorpius asked, as Albus took the cloak off and checked the contents of his backpack. “I thought he was more protective of it after you stole it?”

“He is. Apparently Lil’s been trying to get him to let her use it for weeks.”

“But he said yes to you?”

“Told him he owed me for breaking my ankle.” Albus shrugged with a grin and gestured for Scorpius to come under the cloak with him. They’d both grown a lot since fourth year and it was a bit more of a squeeze; it was all Scorpius could do not to wrap his arm around Albus’ shoulders to stop it uncomfortably bumping into his side. 

“Where are we going?” Scorpius hissed as they exited the common room.

“You’ll see, happy birthday,” Albus repeated, reaching into his pocket and removing the portable silencing charm, which hovered in the air between them and glowed faintly. 

They trudged through the castle, Albus taking the lead at each corner. Scorpius couldn’t help but think about how close their hands were to each other, since Albus had swapped the hand he was holding the cloak with. Once or twice, their fingertips brushed together, making Scorpius’ heart speed up. Albus kept looking up at him and grinning wickedly in a way which was driving Scorpius mad with longing. 

“The astronomy tower?” Scorpius questioned as they climbed the staircase and their destination became clear. 

“Happy birthday!”

They stepped out onto the platform at the top of the tower, where the usual telescope stands were lined up ready for classes. Moonlight bathed the stony surface in a glowing light but everything looked ordinary. 

Albus pulled the cloak away and bundled it back into his backpack. He pointed his wand at the silencing charm, whispering a banishing charm, and it whizzed to hover at the top of the staircase instead. Reaching into his backpack again, he emerged with his music box and placed it on the ground, tapping it once with his wand so music started playing. Another backpack endeavour brought two small objects which Albus placed on the ground in front of them. 

“ _Engorgio_ ,” he whispered, pointing his wand at them and looking triumphant as they grew once more to full size, comfortable-looking squashy cushions. 

If Scorpius didn’t know any better, he would say this whole scene had the makings of something rather more romantic than a boy wishing his best friend happy birthday, but he squashed these thoughts to the back of his mind. He only had one real friend, how would he know? Besides, Albus had almost definitely kissed Thea so he probably had a crush on her anyway. 

“Happy birthday!” He sank into one of the cushions and Scorpius did the same.

“You’ve said that four times now, you know.” 

“Happy birthday, happy birthday, happy birthday.” Albus smirked. 

“Why all this?” Scorpius smiled as Albus once again reached into his backpack and came back with two bottles of butterbeer and several bags of sweets. 

“You’re my best friend, it’s your birthday, I don’t tell you enough that I appreciate you sticking around.” 

“Albus…” Scorpius went to protest this statement but Albus silenced him with a look, reaching into his backpack again. 

He handed Scorpius a wrapped present which seemed to take up the last of the space in his now floppy and empty backpack. The wrapping paper was patterned with the Appleby Arrows logo on a pale blue background and the present itself was box-shaped, but long and narrow. 

“Can I guess what it is?” Scorpius said eagerly, turning it over in his hands.

“It’s what you think it is, but _look_.”

Scorpius unwrapped it carefully, folding the paper neatly and placing it down while Albus drummed his fingers impatiently beside him. Inside was a smart, black box edged with gold and writing stating _Sinistra and Babcock_ in gilt lettering across the top. He gently eased the lid off and opened it to reveal a glossy, emerald green telescope. 

“Albus, it’s _beautiful_.” He turned it over in his hands, noticing the intricately engraved patterns winding their way over the outside. 

“I picked it completely on my own, nobody helped me.” He was looking adorably pleased with himself. “Test it out!” 

Scorpius didn’t need telling twice, and extended the scope carefully, holding it up to his eye and twisting the dial on the side to focus it. The small circle of sky in his eyesight was empty, but a small, golden arrow appeared on one side, pointing over to the left. Instinctively, Scorpius moved the telescope in the direction of the arrow and a star came into view. Lettering in the same gold as the arrow appeared, reading _epsilon pegasi_ and indicating the star. 

“That’s so cool!” He pulled the telescope from his eye and looked at Albus in delight. “Amazing.” 

“You’re not allowed it in your Astronomy OWL though, I’m afraid.” 

“Thankyou, Albus. I really do love it quite a bit.” He put the telescope back up to his eye and just stared and stared at the starry sky. 

“Happy birthday,” his best friend said again, this time in a soft whisper. 

* * *

After Hogsmeade and his birthday, Scorpius barely thought about his nightmares or panic attacks for the whole last week of October. He felt like just being reassured by someone like Victoire that what he was feeling was perfectly normal had done something to help him relax more. But Halloween was coming up and Scorpius was concerned the significance of the day would bring up his anxiety again. 

Halloween fell on a Sunday this year, so he didn’t even have any classes to distract himself. He slept in as late as he could, getting breakfast at the last possible second and collecting some toast for Albus too (he never woke up in time for breakfast on a Sunday). They munched together companionably in the common room, then spent an enjoyable few hours practising the _diminuendo_ and _engorgio_ charms on each other’s possessions in the dorm. 

Scorpius was a little enthusiastic at one point and shrunk Albus’ toothbrush down so small it took both of them crawling around on all fours to find it again and put it back to normal. By the time they found it, Albus was checking his watch and starting to look worried. “I should get going soon.” 

Scorpius mentally smacked himself. He had completely forgotten that Albus was spending the afternoon with his dad. 

“Are you coming to the Halloween feast later?” He sat down on the end of his bed. 

Albus smiled and nodded, joining Scorpius on the narrow edge of his bed. “I’ll be back in time. I told Dad I couldn’t just leave you all day, not today.” 

Not for the first time, Scorpius was amazed at how Albus just seemed to know him so well. A selfish and immature part of his brain wanted to insist Albus didn’t go and stayed there with him instead. 

“Don’t worry about me, have fun with your dad.”

Albus sighed. “There’s a reason he’s coming on Halloween. We both know what it is. I suggested you come too but he wants it to be a father-son thing, you know?” 

“I understand. Go, have fun, fulfill all your father-son-ness.” 

“I’ll only be a couple of hours. That’s about how long it takes for Dad to become unbearably soppy with me these days.” He sat up a little straighter. “ _Al, I’m so pleased we can talk like this now. I really feel like you’re growing up and I’m proud of the person you’re becoming.”_

Albus might have described words like that as unbearably soppy, but Scorpius knew he was using humour to hide how pleased he really was. He also knew that those words would mean the world to him coming from his own father. When Draco told Scorpius he was proud of him, he felt like Bathilda Bagshot had published another book from the grave. 

“You say soppy, I say sweet,” he summarised his feelings. 

Albus just pushed himself up from the bed and went to retrieve his cloak. “I’ll be back by four, promise. Back for the feast, and back in here tonight.”

He’d taken a pause, hovering around the end of his bed, as if he wanted to say something else and didn’t know how to. 

“I’ll be in here, I’m sleeping here, and I don’t use my silencing charm anymore.” 

Scorpius understood what he was trying to say; he was having the same worry that Scorpius was that tonight could be another nightmare night. “Thanks, Al.”

With Albus gone, it was harder to distract himself from unwanted thoughts of the Halloween before and the events which led up to it. He went to the library and tried to read, but the words wriggled around the page and refused to make any sense to his brain. His limbs felt awkward and almost achy in the library chair he’d chosen and he found himself staring longingly out of the window into the grounds below, even though it was cold. The library was busy, with practice NEWTs coming up that week, and Scorpius found he could no longer sit still and read like he’d thought he wanted to. He wanted to be outside and to move his body like never before. 

Remembering what Albus often said about his new running habit clearing his head, Scorpius headed back to the dorm to bundle up for the weather and collect his music box and earphones. He paused as he considered borrowing Albus’ trainers and realised it would be rather ambitious expecting himself to run, and his own ordinary shoes would do just fine for a solitary walk around the grounds. (Besides, Albus’ feet were at least two sizes smaller than his.) 

It was a crisp, cool day and a November chill was just starting to creep in, enough that Scorpius needed to bundle his Slytherin scarf up tightly around his chin. He wrapped his arms around himself and cast a passable warming charm over his coat. It meant he could complete a whole lap of the lake (which took six songs) without suffering from the cold. 

As he walked, Scorpius thought over his feelings of apprehension over going to sleep that night. It was no different to any other night, really, just because it happened to be a year since everything had come to a head. The things he dreamt about usually weren’t even the things which had happened on Halloween. 

The concept of time and when things happened in relation to each other almost didn’t mean anything to Scorpius anymore after their adventure with the time turner. His mum’s birthday, in late June, was a day he expected to feel especially sad about missing her. Instead, he’d found the day brought with it a sense of numbness, almost like the universe was expecting him to be sad that day so it didn’t even matter if he was or wasn’t. 

Was that how it could work today? There was an expectation that today would bring up his anxiety so why did it matter what he dreamt about that night? 

For completely Malfoy the Platonic reasons, he was very glad Albus had recognised he was worried. It occurred to him that it was probably because Albus himself was worried too; Halloween last year had hardly been an easy day for him either.

He was pulled from his reverie by a startled shriek which cut into his soft music. He pulled his earphones out and heard several twigs snapping and the loud cry of what sounded like a horse. Seconds later, a pure white creature appeared from behind a tree and Scorpius goggled at it.

It was a unicorn. An actual, real, right-there-in-front-of-him unicorn, wild from the Forbidden Forest. This was no Care of Magical Creatures lesson. 

Was he supposed to bow? No, that was hippogriffs. Fully grown unicorns prefer witches, he remembered, which put him at a slight disadvantage. 

“Come back here,” a voice hissed and the unicorn turned to survey whoever it was disdainfully. “Please, I need you. Come with me.” 

In the moment the unicorn was still and staring mournfully at the person behind the tree, it disappeared from view as a pair of hands threw something over it. An invisibility cloak. 

No sooner had the speaker popped out from behind the large tree, they recognised who the other was. 

“Lily?”

“Scorpius?” 

“What are you… why do you have… was that a unicorn?” Scorpius spluttered and Lily froze and smiled politely, as if Scorpius was just mistaken. 

“What, that thing? Hmm, maybe. Haven’t really examined it closely enough yet to know for sure. Just happened across it really.” The space behind Lily moved and the cloak slipped off. Lily swore and scrambled to cover it back up again while Scorpius stared at the creature. She tugged on what Scorpius now saw was a short rope tied round the unicorn in an attempt to conceal it from view again. 

“You’ve tied it up.”

Lily looked at the rope in her hands as if seeing it for the first time and stuffed it out of sight, but she said nothing. 

“You’ve hidden it under James’ invisibility cloak.” Scorpius persisted. 

“Okay, Scorpius, you caught me. Put me in detention, prefect. I’ve wanted a pet unicorn since I was a little girl and now I finally have one and I’m going to look after it and feed it and brush its tail and polish its horn and-“ 

Scorpius got the distinct impression he was being lied to. 

“I’m going to leave, and I’m just going to let you get on with whatever it is you’re doing. I didn’t even see you today.” He backed away slowly and fearfully. Lily grinned sheepishly and tried to usher the unicorn in the opposite direction. 

Twice now, Scorpius had come across Lily at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. He hadn’t thought much of it last time; her explanation that she was doing a pre-match yoga ritual was so _Lily_ he’d believed every word. But the unicorn? That was definitely shady and he wasn’t sure if he should tell Albus. 

“Hi, Scorpius!” A bright and unfamiliar voice carried clearly over the corner of the lake to him and he recognised the speaker as Poppy Longbottom, Lily’s best friend. 

“Er, hi.” 

“I’m just enjoying the view.” She grinned enthusiastically and pointed to the lake, tugging a strand of her blonde hair out from under the strap of her backpack. 

“Great, enjoy.” He made to leave but she kept talking. 

“Yes, isn’t Hogwarts beautiful at this time of year? Are you staying for the Christmas holidays? I am. Mum and my brother come here for the holidays and we stay with Dad. Hogwarts Christmas dinner is so good!” 

She said all this very quickly and in a loud, false-sounding voice. 

“That’s… interesting. Er, no, I’m going home for Christmas.” 

His warming charm was wearing off and the cold air was beginning to bite at his cheeks, which had probably already turned pink in the weather; one of the disadvantages of being so pale. 

“You’re not going to give me a detention are you? I didn’t even know prefects patrolled out here.” Poppy asked worriedly.

Scorpius frowned. “I’m not on patrol. Why would I give you a detention? You’re not doing anything wrong.”

Her shoulders relaxed and she breathed a sigh of relief. “Just checking. Dad’ll take my broomstick away if I get any more detentions between now and Christmas. I’ve only had twelve! That’s not even that bad…” She folded her arms exasperatedly. “And only three of them were really my fault.” 

Scorpius sniggered and wondered what Professor Longbottom made of his rebellious daughter if he was threatening to take her broomstick away. 

He left her grumbling about how unfair it was that Professor Vector didn’t understand her need to talk out loud to process what she was learning and headed back towards the castle entrance. The walk had done him good and he could almost see the appeal in Albus’ runs around the grounds. _Almost_.

The steps leading up to the door were covered in damp footprints from the wet grass below. As Scorpius began to climb up them, he heard someone calling his name from behind. Not just someone. _Albus_.

He turned around, pleased to see his best friend hurrying towards him, his cloak flapping behind him. A few paces back, Scorpius could see his dad too and he smiled politely. Even though he was fairly sure Harry Potter didn’t dislike him or consider him a dark cloud anymore, he was still more cautious than he was around Albus’ mum. 

“What are you doing out here?” Albus asked breathlessly when he reached Scorpius. He noticed his best friend’s eyes were red-rimmed. 

“Just been for a walk. Hello, Mr Potter.” 

“Hi, Scorpius.” Harry came to a stop and clapped a hand on Albus’ shoulder. Now he was close enough, Scorpius could see that Harry’s eyes were red, too. “I’m just here popping in to see Neville and Minerva while I drop Albus off. How’s your year going?”

They pushed open the doors to the castle and Scorpius chatted about being a prefect and talked vaguely about OWL prep. Harry seemed genuinely interested, but Scorpius couldn’t help but notice Albus was quieter than usual. When they parted ways at the entrance to the dungeons, there was a moment of silence before they both broke it simultaneously.

“Are you alright?”

“Sorry about that.” 

Scorpius was flustered. “Sorry for what? You don’t need to be sorry.”

“Sorry for my dad grilling you with questions. I know he can be a bit much.”

“No, no, it’s no problem. You know I can talk for England. I’m just pleased he seems to like me now.” 

They reached the common room and Albus shook his head. “Of course he likes you. He asked about you before he even asked how I was doing on the Quidditch team.” 

Scorpius smiled at this knowledge and then remembered what he needed to ask Albus.

“Are you alright? How was it?” 

Albus paused and played nervously with the back of his hair. “It was… actually really nice. We talked about, you know, last year and some other stuff, and it was a bit emotional. But it was good, I liked it.” 

“I’m glad you had a good time.”

“We’re about to have an even better time eating our body weight in sweets though.” They exchanged a grin and headed back to the common room to change for the Halloween Feast.

* * *

Scorpius needn’t have worried about having a nightmare, because the amount of sugar he’d consumed meant his dreams that night were more bizarre than terrifying. 

It started with Professor Flitwick handing him a large rabbit at the end of Charms which Scorpius was required to carry with him when he went outside. After several shaky laps of the lake, which felt effortless, the rabbit had finally grown a full size unicorn’s horn which meant Scorpius could release it into the forest. He did so to several rounds of applause from a watching crowd of the Gryffindor Quidditch team and also his grandmother, who was wearing a peacock feather boa. 

Just as Grandma was offering Scorpius a deck of Exploding Snap cards, he felt himself wake up abruptly. He stared around the dark space above him, trying to identify what had pulled him from sleep. He wasn’t too hot or too cold, he didn’t need to use the bathroom, he hadn’t been having an unpleasant dream. It was like his body had just decided he needed to be awake. 

He’d once read that awaking like this meant somebody somewhere was thinking about you and their energy woke you up. Scorpius wasn’t sure how much he believed this theory; who would be thinking about him in the early hours of the morning? Dad would be asleep surely. It must be a coincidence. 

As he settled onto his side, the familiar sounds of the dorm echoed around him. He could hear Higgs snoring lightly and the ticking of the overly-loud clock Cole kept on his bedside table. To his left - Albus’ side - he heard heavy breathing and suddenly a deep sniff. Scorpius blinked twice and listened for it again, remaining completely still. 

He heard it again: another sniff followed by some snuffling noises. It wasn’t a sound he was used to hearing from Albus but it certainly wasn’t one he could let his best friend make by himself.

Scorpius eased himself out of bed and crept very carefully to Albus’ bedside, ready to apologise at any second, hoping he’d got it wrong. But the sound was unmistakable this close, and he gingerly pulled back the hangings of Albus’ bed to find his best friend curled up at the head of the bed, hugging his knees into his chest and softly crying into his folded arms. 

He looked up at Scorpius’ intrusion and sighed, unfolding his arms only to then fold them the other way instead. 

“Nightmare?” Scorpius whispered gently and Albus nodded, not making eye contact. 

“Sorry,” he said tearfully, sniffing loudly and wiping his cheeks with the back of his hand. Scorpius shook his head and lowered himself down so he was sitting beside Albus on the bed. “There was me worrying about you and then I go and have one tonight.”

“Don’t apologise, you can’t help it.” He paused for a second and Albus watched him silently. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Albus shook his head firmly. “No. I want to forget it.” 

It had been many months since Albus had had a nightmare at school; Scorpius thought back to fourth year when it was much more common and what had helped his best friend back then. He didn’t like to be coddled, he preferred to be distracted. 

“Alright, _Twenty Questions_ or _Snog, Marry, Hex_?”

Albus looked at him incredulously through tears. “ _Snog, Marry, Hex_? When have we ever played that before?”

“We haven’t, now would be the first time.” 

Albus rolled his eyes and reached for his wand, summoning the portable silencing charm and activating it inside his bed. “Okay, I’ll start. Moaning Myrtle, Rita Skeeter and Professor McGonagall.”

“On second thoughts, let’s play _Twenty Questions_. I’ll start.” Scorpius smiled at Albus’ triumphant smirk and crossed his legs on top of the bed. Albus threw him a spare blanket which he tossed around his shoulders and they stayed in Albus’ bed, laughing together for the next hour until Albus passed out asleep and Scorpius crept back to his own bed.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still amazed by the response to this story! Thanks to everyone who has left a comment, they make my absolute day (and I love talking to you guys too!)   
> Thanks to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for all their help and support :)   
> I’m on tumblr as littlerose13writes   
> Updating on Monday!


	12. Negative Nifflers

Scorpius completely forgot about Lily and her unicorn until a week into November when she was leaving a Charms lesson as the Slytherin fifth years were lining up outside. Professor Flitwick was setting them a practice test that day and the class’ different ways of preparing were something of a spectacle.

Thea was muttering to herself and flicking her wrist around in wand motions. Rose had a large textbook open in both hands and she was switching between glancing at it and also muttering to herself. They weren’t far apart, creating a strange pathway of muttered charms practice.

“Oh no!” Rose suddenly gasped and she swung her bag around in front of her, the textbook precariously balanced in one hand as she rooted around for something. She looked a bit frantic as she scrabbled around and she glanced up, catching Scorpius’ eye. “Hold this.”

“Um, okay.” Scorpius fumbled with the heavy textbook she foisted upon him without a second glance. He held it awkwardly in both hands. 

Albus was groaning out loud and complaining about how he was sure the test would be on something they hadn’t learned yet, just to catch them out. He might not have been so negative about it, had it not been for Cole, who was encouraging his complaints with his own even more enthusiastic ones.

“Stop being such a Negative Niffler,” Scorpius blurted out after listening to Albus describe every time he’d managed to get the colour-changing charm wrong in the past week and conveniently forget about every time he was successful. 

Albus burst out laughing. “A _Negative Niffler_? That’s a new one, Scor.” 

“It’s what my mum always said,” Scorpius shrugged and adjusted Rose’s textbook in his arms as the third years filed out and past them. Lily and Poppy both stopped level with Scorpius and Albus. 

“Hi, Scorpius,” they both chorused in unison, smiling angelically and each tossing their hair over their shoulder as they left, red hair bouncing beside blonde. 

“Oops, forgot I was wearing this invisibility cloak,” Albus called sarcastically after her and turned to Scorpius incredulously. “I’m only her brother. What was that for?” 

Scorpius had a shrewd suspicion that Lily didn’t entirely trust that he wasn’t going to tell anyone about the unicorn, which may have been fair as he still wasn’t sure it was something he should be keeping secret. 

Albus slapped his hand to his head and groaned again. “Don’t tell me my sister has a crush on you.” 

Scorpius felt himself turn scarlet. “She’s not… I don’t think…” 

“Maybe Poppy does?” he suggested as the class began to file in. 

Scorpius lowered his voice as they took their seats and the lesson start was delayed by Rose asking Flitwick a series of questions. Her textbook took up most of the space on Scorpius’ desk but he didn’t know if she wanted him to return it yet. “Apparently, Poppy has a crush on _you_.”

Albus blinked at him. “Does she? Why?” 

Scorpius couldn’t help but snort with laughter at the confused and bewildered expression on his best friend’s face. It was such an _Albus_ response, it was impossible not to laugh. 

“I know it’s a hilarious concept, someone having a crush on me, but at least laugh behind my back.” Albus pulled his quill and parchment out with a grin.

“I wasn’t laughing at that, I was laughing at you asking _why_?” 

“Well… why?”

“Albus, why _not_?” Scorpius busied himself with his own parchment as he quelled the list of reasons he could give Albus and tried to keep Malfoy the Platonic under control. 

Flitwick finally shook Rose off at this point and hushed the class to explain the test so Albus couldn’t respond, but he definitely had a bit of a grin on his face as Flitwick set them a list of three charms he would be testing them on. Rose didn’t come back for the textbook, so Scorpius tucked it away in his own bag. 

Thea caught up with them after the class and rifled through her bag, handing Albus a copy of _Quidditch Weekly_. “Here, Al. The article I was telling you about, check page eight.” 

“Oh, thanks, I’ll read it now.” Albus flicked through the magazine as they walked to Transfiguration and Scorpius gently pulled him by the shoulder to stop him walking into a first year. 

“Are you both coming to Slughorn’s November, er, thing? However you pronounce it.”

“A soirée,” Scorpius put in helpfully in an exaggerated French accent. “Yes, we are. What are they like? It’s our first time.” 

Albus looked up for a second from the magazine and Scorpius could tell he was half-listening as he read. 

“They’re alright, a bit lowkey, not like the big Christmas party. Mainly he brings a few important people to meet us, sometimes they’re Quidditch players. The food’s not bad either.” Thea shrugged. “I’m glad you two are going, there’s not many people from our year.” 

“Where would you be without us?” Albus looked up from the magazine and gave Thea a glowing smile. “This is so helpful, by the way.” 

“I thought so too! Although, you have to count on Ravenclaw’s Chasers having read it too so don’t trust it too much.” Thea adjusted her ponytail as she spoke. 

Albus shrugged. “I’ll give it a try at training tonight.” 

“When’s the next game?” Scorpius cut in.

“A week Saturday,” Albus replied. “Gryffindor vs Hufflepuff.” 

“Gryffindor have it, without a doubt,” Thea said quickly. “Their Seeker’s crap this year. Your sister’s miles better, Al.” 

Albus looked faintly proud of Lily and grinned. “Don’t let her hear you saying that.” 

“She is.” Thea shrugged. “I don’t know how that Hufflepuff Seeker is still on the team.”

“Well when you’re captain of all four house teams, Thea, you can do something about it.” Albus spoke in a mock serious tone as he folded the magazine up and stuck it into his bag. 

“Speaking of Hufflepuff and Quidditch, did you hear what happened at their last training session?” 

Scorpius exchanged a look with Albus, pleased to see he looked just as blank as Scorpius probably did. 

Thea shook her head. “That boy from sixth year, Montague, went to watch them train.” She looked triumphant, as if she’d just divulged the most shocking piece of information. 

“Is that bad?” Scorpius asked uncertainly. “Or good?” 

“It’s not bad or good. But it means Freya is definitely seeing him!”

“Who and what?” Albus looked completely lost. 

“Freya Everfall, Hufflepuff Chaser, the blonde one. There have been rumours going around about her and Montague for weeks but this confirms they’re definitely a thing!” Thea seemed exasperated that they weren’t as excited as she apparently was.

“Does it?” Scorpius tried after a pause.

“Come on, I know it’s you two, but everyone knows you only go to Quidditch practice if you’re dating one of the players. It’s practically an admittance!” 

Scorpius tried very hard to feel interested or excited that Freya Everfall was dating Montague but instead, all he could picture was a scenario where Albus was his boyfriend and Scorpius went to _his_ Quidditch practices.

“I didn’t know that was a thing,” said Albus, sounding amused. 

“It’s a thing.” Thea looked a bit disappointed that they weren’t as excited as her. 

Scorpius’ imagination went into overdrive as he envisioned sitting in the stands and proudly watching his boyfriend Albus save goal after goal, cheering him on enthusiastically. Then he’d come flying down to the pitch and Scorpius would be there to greet him with a kiss, and they’d walk back to the common room together hand in hand. 

“Scorpius!” 

“Huh?” He blinked in fright at the sound of Rose’s voice jerking him back to reality.

“My textbook. You still have it.” She held her hand out for the textbook and he gingerly handed it over, feeling like he’d just woken up from a deep sleep. 

Rose took the book suspiciously and left, following Thea who Scorpius hadn’t even noticed had gone. Albus looked at him with narrowed eyes. 

“Smooth,” he said, gently tugging on Scorpius’ elbow to guide him away and towards the Great Hall for lunch. 

* * *

“What’s this thing again?” Cole lounged on his bed, one hand behind his head and the other swinging his beater’s bat gently at imaginary bludgers. 

“One of Slughorn’s networking events,” Pucey replied in a bored voice as he put his shoes on. “They’re dull as anything. Mum says I have to go.” 

“Are they really that bad?” Scorpius asked skeptically. 

“Yeah,” he mumbled and left the dormitory with a mutter of _see you both there_ over his shoulder. 

“Don’t listen to him. I’m sure you’ll love it, Blondie,” Cole insisted, putting the bat down.

Scorpius had no idea if he would love it or not, but Albus was going too so it couldn’t be that bad. He wasn’t sure how to voice this to Cole so he settled for shrugging and grinning before ducking down to lace his shoes. 

Albus emerged from the bathroom showered and fully dressed, his hair a fluffy mess where he’d clearly just dried it haphazardly with his wand. Scorpius straightened up and smiled at him and Albus smiled back; he was obviously looking forward to their first Slug Club event. 

He turned to look in the mirror, wrinkled his nose up and started trying to tame the front of his hair with - Scorpius nearly choked - a hairbrush that definitely didn’t belong to him. 

“Is that mine?” he practically squeaked. 

Since when did they share hairbrushes? Was that a platonic thing to do? 

Albus looked apologetic and stopped brushing his hair for a second. “Do you mind? Couldn’t find mine and yours was right there.” 

“No, er, that’s fine.” Scorpius sunk down onto his bed and pretended to busy himself with his shoelaces again, tucking them in unnecessarily. There was something about Albus using his hairbrush so casually that was making him feel rather distant from Malfoy the Platonic. 

He tried not to watch out of the corner of his eye as Albus brushed his hair in his own adorably inept way. It was obvious he wasn’t used to brushing it, because he was going in the wrong direction and completely missing the back altogether. Scorpius wanted to offer to brush Albus’ hair for him, but even with Cole sat there chatting away about rumours he’d heard about Slughorn’s Christmas party, it seemed a bit too intimate. 

“That’ll do,” he said after a minute, placing Scorpius’ hairbrush down in front of the mirror and turning to look at Scorpius. “Ready?” 

Scorpius took in his best friend in all his Albus-y handsomeness and momentarily couldn’t answer his question. “Yes, ready,” he eventually stuttered out. 

“You have fun then. I’m going to eat dinner with the rest of us peasants who weren’t invited.” Cole joked as he left the dormitory. 

Albus smiled at Scorpius and gestured towards the door. “Shall we?”

Scorpius hopped up and grinned at him. “Let’s sashay to the soirée.”

“Merlin, why are you like this?” Albus patted his cheek affectionately in a way he never had before and turned to leave. 

Scorpius felt his heart rate increase a bit as he followed Albus from the dorm.

* * *

Slughorn’s November Soirée was about what Scorpius expected it to be. Lots of important witches and wizards circulated around and Slughorn himself managed to be in about five places at once, talking his students up to his invited guests. It wasn’t hard to spot several seventh years eager to make connections for post-Hogwarts careers.

Scorpius still wasn’t sure how he felt about the way Slughorn picked his favourites to give leg ups to. If he and Albus hadn’t found themselves front page news last year, he doubted they’d even be there now. Actually, Albus probably would still have eventually been invited when Slughorn could see that Harry Potter’s second son was a potions prodigy. 

At least he could be sure that nobody could say being in the Slug Club would give him a better chance of getting into Healer school; the application process was based on pure talent only. That didn’t mean he wasn’t incredibly interested to talk to an experienced Healer about the possible path his career might take. 

It had been during that terrible summer, before his third year, that he’d secured the ambition to become a Healer. Having spent more time than the average thirteen-year-old in a St Mungo’s ward, he found himself intrigued with all of the interesting procedures going on around him. None of it made him squeamish or uncomfortable; instead he was eager to find out more. The human body was an incredible thing, and when magic was added to the mix, it was something altogether fascinating. 

“This is nice,” Scorpius said politely, leaning lightly against a small drinks table and trying to count how many people were there. 

Thea swirled her drink around with a straw. “I wonder if there are any Quidditch players here.” She stood on tiptoe, peering round to look at who was there. “Where did Al go?”

“I’m not sure,” Scorpius shrugged. “He spotted somebody, I don’t know who.”

“I’m sure some of these people have known him since he was a baby.” Thea sighed slightly wistfully and Scorpius wondered if she had even noticed that Albus really didn’t enjoy the extra attention his family got. 

“Maybe,” Scorpius muttered.

“Who are you hoping to talk to? You want to be a Healer don’t you?”

Scorpius nodded shyly. “One day, I’d love to.” 

Before she could grill him further on his career ambitions, she was interrupted by Albus returning and looking altogether pleased with himself. 

“Where were you?” Scorpius asked curiously. 

Albus grinned and turned to their companion. “Thea, come and meet my mum. I was just telling her all about you.”

Thea’s eyes widened and she almost dropped her drink. “Al! You didn’t tell me… I can’t believe… as if your mum is here!” 

Albus smiled at her excitement and started to pull her away. “Make sure to ask her about the time she accidentally locked me in the car.” 

Thea started to smooth her hair down as they went to leave, and Scorpius wasn’t sure if he should follow or not. Albus saved him the trouble of worrying by turning back a few paces away and appraising him. 

“You’re coming too, Scor. Mum wants to see you.” 

Scorpius jumped and hurried to catch up with them. On the way to his two friends, he was waylaid by Slughorn who seemed to pop out of the ground and attach himself to Scorpius’ elbow. Albus shrugged and carried on without him.

“Scorpius! I’ve been looking for you, want to introduce you to dear Hetty.” He lead Scorpius away and towards a formidable-looking woman who gave off a very Professor McGonagall-ish vibe. 

“Hetty, my dear, I have an aspiring Healer for you to meet, one of my best students.” Scorpius smiled nervously, wondering when he’d ever before been classed as one of Slughorn’s best students. “This is Scorpius Malfoy. Scorpius, this is Henrietta Fairchild. Hetty leads the Artefact Accidents department at St Mungo’s.” 

“Pleasure to meet you.” Scorpius shook her hand and she smiled kindly. 

“It’s always a delight to meet one of Horace’s protégées, especially one who is interested in the noble profession of Healing.”

“I’ll leave the two of you to get acquainted.” Slughorn swept away with an excited squeal. 

“How long have you been interested in Healing?” Henrietta Fairchild looked as if she was genuinely interested in Scorpius’ answer.

“I suppose two years now. My interest started because my mum was very ill one summer and I spent an awful lot of time at St Mungo’s visiting her. I spoke to Healer Dearborn a lot, he was her Healer, and he told me all about what he was doing and I just found it all so interesting.”

“Hector Dearborn? Specialises in blood curses and maledictions? Or his brother Monty over in Spell Damage?”

“Hector. She was… blood curse.” Scorpius tailed off and looked at his shoes. 

“I’m sorry, dear. Nasty things, those.” She patted the top of his arm kindly. “That’s a good reason to go into Healing. Do you have a particular department in mind?”

Scorpius considered her question and realised he really didn’t have a particular department in mind. Whenever he’d pictured himself as a Healer, he’d just imagined doing Hector Dearborn’s job and hadn’t thought about the huge range of other departments the hospital contained. 

He shook his head. “Not yet, I think I need to know a bit more about them first.” 

She nodded in understanding. “That’s what Smash is for.”

“Sorry, _Smash_?” Scorpius was lost already. 

“Healer school, St Mungo’s School of Healing Excellence, SMSHE, Smash.” She reeled off this list with a casual wave of her hand. “We all call it Smash.”

“Right, yes. I’d never heard it called that before.” 

“Smash’ll sort you out. You spend your first two years circulating through the departments and getting a feel for each one, alongside your more general training of course. Your third year is spent almost entirely in the department you choose to specialise in, and that’s when you write your dissertation. Then the real work starts in your fourth year and beyond.” 

Scorpius nodded enthusiastically, thinking of Victoire. “I know someone who’s in their third year now! She’s specialising in mental health magic.” 

“Ah yes, one of our newer departments. They’re always adding new ones.” 

“What’s your department like?” 

“Varied. No two days are the same. I can start a morning attending to a simple broom crash and finish it removing shattered cauldron pieces from places I’d rather not mention. You’re not squeamish are you?” 

Scorpius held back a snort of laughter. “No, not at all.”

“You’ll want to get some experience of course, sooner rather than later. Applications open next week for the seventh years who want to be Smash students, and I’ll tell you now that they won’t even look at you if you’ve not set foot in a hospital since the day you were born.” 

“I was born at home,” Scorpius put in conversationally and Fairchild laughed.

“Drop me an owl when your OWLs are out of the way. I’ll give you a taste of what my department’s like. In the meantime, keep working hard in your classes. Smash is one of the only places who look at your OWLs as well as your NEWTs, don’t get caught out.” 

“Thankyou, I will.” 

They smiled at each other and she took a few steps away before she was accosted by a seventh year. Scorpius headed to where he thought Albus and Thea were but they weren’t there and instead, he saw James with his mum, their heads close together and speaking in whispered tones. 

“ _No_ , Mum. That’s not how I want to do this,” James raised his voice and Ginny sighed and muttered something back. “I already told you, if it doesn’t happen for me this year, I’ll move out to Half Moon Bay and train with Millie for a year; she said she’d have me.” 

“Of course she said that, but have you considered-“

Just as Scorpius was thinking he should change paths, Ginny spotted him and smiled warmly. 

“There you are, Scorpius!” She left James looking cross and swept him up into another one of her comfortable, motherly hugs, patting his hair.

“Hi, hello, hi,” Scorpius awkwardly stuttered out a greeting to them both. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I thought Albus was over here.” 

James still looked rather put-out. “Nah, he’s somewhere with Thea Jordan.” He waved a hand casually and the glint in his eye gave Scorpius such a strong feeling of deja vu and Lily at the Quidditch party. “I always thought he was more into blondes, but-“

“You shut up right now, James Sirius Potter,” Ginny interrupted and James laughed lightly. “Don’t listen to him, Scorpius. Any opportunity to tease his brother.”

 _Was_ this an opportunity? 

“She’s a sweet girl isn’t she, this Thea? Albus said she’s been a good friend to you both. She certainly knows her Quidditch.” Ginny smiled fondly. 

“That she does,” he replied, not sure how to proceed. “I think you might be her idol. She wants to be a Harpy.”

“Oh I know, she told me her plans in great detail.” Scorpius grinned because that sounded just like Thea. 

“See you later, Mum,” James muttered, shuffling past Scorpius as if trying to get away.

“James!” She sounded annoyed and there was a pause. 

“Er, thanks again for that letter, Mrs Potter.” 

She pulled a face. “ I hope you don’t mind. I’m so glad you two made friends again.” She reached out and ruffled his hair, the way he’d seen her do to Albus so many times before. 

“Oh yes, friends again.”

Ginny smiled knowingly, even though there was no way she could have known that Scorpius had more than friendly feelings for her son. 

“Oh look, here comes another one of my offspring.” 

She reached out and put an arm around Lily, who was looking bored. “Why did James make such a big deal out of being in the Slug Club? This is the most boring event I’ve ever been to.”

“Don’t hold back with the honesty, Lil.”

“By the way, Mum, James is hiding from you over there.” She pointed in the direction she’d just come from and Ginny sighed.

“Excuse me.” She left, following Lily’s tip off. 

Lily pointedly looked in the other direction and sipped her drink. 

“Um, hi,” Scorpius stuttered uncertainly. 

“I know you’re going to ask me about it,” she said casually, still not looking at him. “About what you saw.”

“Honestly, Lily, I’m not. You’re allowed to have a secret.” 

She turned to look at him in disbelief, noting his serious expression and bursting out with laughter. Scorpius felt confusion and worry bloom within him that he’d somehow said completely the wrong thing, but Lily’s laughter was kind and she gently touched his elbow. “You don’t have any brothers or sisters, do you?” 

“Not unless my dad has a big surprise for me when I come home for Christmas,” Scorpius grinned and Lily laughed again. “I don’t understand what’s so funny.” 

Lily wiped at her eyes and took a deep breath. “Sorry, I’m not laughing at you, I promise. It’s just, the idea of being _allowed to have a secret_. If Al or James had seen me, they’d stop at nothing to find out what I was doing.” 

“So you were doing something?” Scorpius teased.

“It’s a secret I’m allowed to have. If you want, you can put me in prefect detention. I’ve never been to that before but seeing as it’s my brother who runs it, I imagine it would be a laugh.”

Scorpius shook his head, smiling. “I’m not going to put you in detention, Lily.”

“If you insist,” Lily smiled. “Where’s my brother? You’re never normally far apart.”  

Scorpius internally groaned before he answered, not wanting Lily to say what he knew she was going to say. “He’s with Thea.”

“Oh,” Lily shrugged, uninterested. “I like her, she said I was a good Seeker.” 

It was an underwhelming reaction compared to her absolutely insistence they were kissing at the Quidditch party. 

“That’s it? You’re not going to tease him about fancying her again?” 

Lily shook her head. “No, snogging someone doesn’t always mean you fancy them.”

“It doesn’t?” Scorpius felt like his whole understanding up until this point had been completely wrong. 

“No way, look at James!” Lily said like it was obvious. “Sure, Albus kissed Thea that one time, but they weren’t together the next day, were they? It only means something if they’re together the next day and it’s been weeks since that party.”

_It only means something if they’re together the next day._

Scorpius felt butterflies in his stomach and a grin on his face as he considered her words and realised they were the logic he’d been looking for for weeks. She was right. Even if Albus _had_ kissed Thea, they weren’t together or anything, were they? Maybe a bit flirty at times, but he would know by now if it was something more, wouldn’t he? 

With a lighter feeling in his heart and a spring in his step, Scorpius skipped off to get more punch. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo much thanks go to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for the help with this chapter, which has caused me more stress than the first 11 chapters put together!   
> Please let me know what you thought, I’m still not completely happy with this chapter but I was happy enough to post it on time so :)   
> All of the thanks and love to everyone who has commented, it makes my day!   
> Follow me on tumblr:littlerose13writes for snippets of future chapters (and of course my wonderful fan art of these two... that’s a joke btw #moonfaceMalfoy) but speaking of, check out cherrydore’s actual really amazing art based on SWF scenes! (She drew the birthday stargazing not-date from the last chapter and it’s perfect)


	13. Potter Charm

The start of December brought with it the usual lavish Christmas decorations all over the castle. The Slytherin dormitories were the coldest they got all year and the seventh years were in charge of helping the younger students cast warming charms over their beds every night. The first term had gone quickly, but as their teachers continued to remind them, OWLs were just around the corner and they wouldn’t be winding down for Christmas anytime soon. 

“I have so much Arithmancy homework I think I’m going to turn into an Arithmancy,” Albus complained as they met up after Scorpius’ Muggle Studies lesson to walk to History. 

“What… does that even mean?” Scorpius laughed, his spirits high after an enjoyable lesson in which they’d studied several Muggle Christmas films.

“I’ll let you know when I’ve done all the homework,” Albus groaned. “At least Quidditch is over for the year, otherwise I’d be up all night.” 

“I can help you if you want. I don’t have any Muggle Studies homework.” 

Albus smiled at him gratefully. “Thanks, Scor, but you don’t have to. I’ll do it with Thea.”

Scorpius ignored the uncomfortable feeling in his stomach and shrugged. “Probably best, I’m not sure how much help I’d actually be.” 

As they climbed the final staircase to the History of Magic classroom, Albus’ eyes lit up. “Hey, do you know what I realised today?” 

“What?” 

“Well, it’s December now. So that means you went for the whole of November without having a panic attack. A whole month, Scor!” He looked overjoyed, blinking a little faster than usual. 

Of course Scorpius was aware that the last panic attack he’d had was all the way back in October, and that it had been over a month ago now. But he felt a wave of pleasure at the idea of Albus noticing too, keeping track for him like that. 

“It has been a whole month and none at all! I think talking to my dad and Victoire about it really did help.” He hesitated for a second, not sure why this was nerve-wracking. “He’s found some good therapists, we’re going to talk about it more over Christmas, maybe choose one.” 

“That’s great, Scor.” Albus smiled kindly and reached out to touch him lightly on the shoulder now they’d stopped outside the classroom. “It’ll help, I promise.” 

He took his hand away from Scorpius’ shoulder as their class filed in and prepared for one of Binns’ usual lectures; this definitely wouldn’t be Christmas themed. The classroom was chilly and the general mood of the Slytherins was low. Even Scorpius wasn’t feeling overly enthusiastic about history with the holidays so near. 

Professor Binns droned on about Scorpius’ least favourite goblin war, and he tried to follow along in his textbook, but he kept getting lost and allowing his mind to wander. Maybe this was how Albus felt in every History of Magic lesson.

His best friend was hunched over his desk, a self-inking quill in one hand which was working away furiously. Scorpius knew better than to think Albus was taking notes in a History of Magic lesson, and as Albus adjusted his position, he could see a series of small doodles all over his skin starting at his thumb and creeping up and past his wrist. An arrowhead, a fir tree, and a paper aeroplane were the most recognisable but Albus had covered the rest of his hand with stripes and polka dots. 

Binns continued to talk and Thea nudged Cole, who was snoring. Out of the corner of his eye, Scorpius saw movement and the next thing he knew, Albus’ hand was in his.

He froze. Albus was holding his hand in the middle of class?

He turned, bewildered, to see his best friend pull his hand towards him and lay it flat on the table. Without so much as a glance in Scorpius’ direction, he picked up his quill and carried on inking small doodles, this time all over Scorpius’ hand. Scorpius opened his mouth to protest, but when Albus doodled a shooting star right over the sensitive skin between his thumb and forefinger, he shivered and allowed Albus to continue.

For the first time ever, Scorpius didn’t even try to pay attention to Binns’ history lecture. It _was_ his least favourite goblin war and Albus’ hand was warm in his. 

* * *

The last day of term brought with it Slughorn’s Christmas party. According to James, it was the best part about being in the Slug Club. Albus and Scorpius weren’t sure what to expect.

Albus stared into the mirror, his left hand making fruitless attempts to tidy his hair. It was getting long, his fringe beginning to fall past his green eyes, the back starting to messily brush at the top of his collar; Scorpius suppressed the insatiable desire to run his hands through Al’s dark hair and brush it back from his eyes. He twisted his hands in the inside of his own dress robes as if that might somehow do instead.

“I think I need a haircut.” Albus grinned at Scorpius who immediately ducked into his trunk to hide the rising blush he felt coming. Albus’ hair was one of Scorpius’ favourite things about his appearance, because it was so uniquely Albus. He rarely bothered to tame it for classes, instead just embracing the disarray he woke up with and Scorpius thought it always looked utterly adorable. 

“Have you tried a brush? I often find a brush works far better than just your hand.” He straightened up from his trunk and handed Albus the brush he’d retrieved for him.

“Oh yeah, I do have one of those somewhere.” Albus waved his hand casually towards his own belongings but he accepted Scorpius’ offered brush. His fingertips grazed the back of Scorpius’ hand just slightly and he brought it up to his hair uncertainly. “I’m awful at making it look neat.” 

Scorpius watched Al try to smarten his hair, his attempts only slightly more successful with the brush. It was really too long and too Albus-y to resemble anything which could be described as _neat_ , but Scorpius thought it was perfect. 

“You couldn’t, er, help me get the back right could you? I can't… see what I’m doing.” Albus was stood at an awkward angle to the mirror, his body twisted as he attempted to see the back of his own head.

Scorpius hesitated; the idea of brushing Al’s hair for him seemed somehow too intimate given the forbidden thoughts which were rushing through his mind. 

No. This is platonic. Scorpius reminded himself of this fact as he took the brush again from where Albus held it out expectantly, making sure their hands did not touch this time.

“Scor, are you okay? You seem a bit tense.” Albus asked innocently.

“Okay, yes I’m okay, and you’re okay. Isn’t this all just so very okay?” Scorpius babbled with no instruction from his brain to do so. “Shut up Scorpius, stop saying okay. Okay?” 

“Okay.” Albus smirked, turning away from Scorpius.

He was faced with the back of Al’s head as he stood waiting patiently. 

“Okay,” Scorpius whispered and he silently took a deep breath. He tried to act as naturally as possible as he slowly ran the hairbrush through the back of Albus’ soft, dark hair, taming it into submission. Scorpius forced himself to imagine anything but running his hands through it and kissing the back of Albus’ neck. He kept going, carefully brushing Albus’ hair until the back lay almost flat and the longer parts at the front tucked neatly behind his ear. 

Although Scorpius preferred Albus’ hair in its usual mess, there was something inherently handsome about the way he looked with it brushed smartly to one side, framing his green eyes. It made him look older and more dignified, and Scorpius had to force himself not to stare. 

“My mum used to sing to me when she brushed my hair,” he blurted out randomly, wondering why he’d just shared this with Albus. “A different song every morning, and then she’d kiss the top of my head and let me brush hers.”

“ _My_ mum used to bribe me with chocolate frogs to let her brush my hair. Your way sounds much more loving.”Albus turned and placed his hand on Scorpius’ shoulder, his kind eyes full of Albus-y gentleness. “Scor, are you sure you’re okay? Are you nervous about this party? We don’t have to go if you’re too anxious about it.” 

He should have known Albus would pick up that something was wrong with him; he was behaving very strangely.

“No, no I’m positively skipping at the prospect of attending,” Scorpius said honestly, trying to snap out of it before Albus became suspicious. 

“I’ll be there for you, you know. If it gets too much, just come and find me and we’ll go, I promise.” Albus squeezed his shoulder but didn’t let go. 

“I’m Malfoy the Unanxious don’t forget?” Scorpius laughed falsely, trying to distract himself from how caring Albus was towards him. 

_He cares for you because he’s your friend, your platonic, best friend. Stop it, Scorpius._

“Scorpius, it’s okay to feel the way you do sometimes.” Albus finally removed his hand and sat down on his bed, his hands clasped in front of him and his gaze at the floor. 

Scorpius didn’t know what to say. The truth was, the prospect of attending Slughorn’s party really _wasn’t_ making him feel anxious. But how could he explain that his odd behaviour was a result of something as simple as brushing his best friend’s hair? 

“If I feel myself starting to panic, I’ll find you, but I think I’ll be okay. It’s been ages since I’ve even had a nightmare.”

Albus stared at Scorpius with desperate eyes and he couldn’t help but join his best friend sitting on the bed, their legs touching as Scorpius settled next to him on the bed. “You’re getting so much better, Scor. I don’t want anything to knock your confidence and set you back again.”

It was odd to hear Albus say to him the exact thoughts Scorpius held about his best friend. He _adored_ the new fifth-year, confident Albus who didn’t let bullies walk over him and excelled in Potions and flew expertly on the Quidditch team. He would have hated for something to drag Albus back to the retreated, unhappy place he’d been in before. 

“Confident as ever, me.” He said this in what he hoped was a reassuring tone. 

“Will Thea be there tonight?” Albus muttered after a pause and Scorpius froze. Their legs were still touching. 

“I expect so, she’s a brilliant witch isn’t she? Really Slughorn’s type.” Scorpius felt his insides working furiously as he spoke in a pitch higher than he meant to. Of course Albus was interested in Thea and not him. Albus was perfect, and because he was perfect, he wouldn’t have _feelings_ for his best friend like Scorpius did. 

“Is she _your_ type, Scor?” Albus said meaningfully and Scorpius wasn’t sure how he was supposed to answer. Was Albus checking to see if she was fair game or not? Did Prefect partners rank higher than Quidditch teammates? He still didn’t know if Albus had kissed Thea at the Quidditch party or not. 

“What? Oh, um, I suppose she’s quite pretty, isn’t she?” Scorpius was interested to hear if Albus would agree or not; the only girl they had ever talked about was Albus’ own cousin. 

“Sorry, I forgot you’re still hung up on Rose, aren’t you. She’ll be there tonight too, I’d imagine.” Albus stood up from the bed, breaking their contact and going to stare at himself in the mirror again.

Scorpius tried to arrange his face into what he hoped was an expression which conveyed longing for Rose, rather than her dark-haired Slytherin cousin. 

“Shall we?” Albus seemed satisfied with his appearance and waited for Scorpius to get up too. They were both wearing dress robes, Scorpius’ a charcoal grey and Albus’ bottle green. He knew Albus felt uncomfortable wearing them, even though Scorpius thought he looked beautiful. 

He had attempted to tell his best friend this in the most platonic way he could muster, which resulted in Scorpius stuttering over a vague comment about liking the colour green. 

The party was held in Slughorn’s office, a short walk from the Slytherin common room. When they arrived, it was clear Slughorn had pulled out all the stops with the Christmas themed party. The two boys looked around the lavishly decorated room then incredulously at one another. Scorpius could see the revelation dawning across Albus’ face at the same time: the room was full of couples.

Rose was posing for a photo next to Yann Fredericks while a tall seventh year stood arm in arm with his boyfriend. A pair of sixth year Hufflepuff girls held hands near Lily, who was chatting away to a third year boy who looked pleased as punch to be there with her. Slughorn was chatting with Professor Flitwick and a cluster of seventh year students.

“Scor, were we supposed to bring _partners_?” Albus looked as mortified as Scorpius suddenly felt. Bringing a partner to this party hadn’t been mentioned by anybody at any point ever, but there was no doubt that the majority of people present were coupled up. 

“The invitation didn’t say to, besides there isn’t a dance floor. Nobody will notice we’re by ourselves if we stick together and keep mingling.” Scorpius spoke logically, trying not to consider the fact that it might look like he had brought Albus as his partner. 

“Must be one of those Slug Club unwritten rules.” Albus looked annoyed as they walked further into the room, a distinct distance between the two of them. 

“Who would you have asked then?” Scorpius decided to broach the subject.

The closest they’d come to anything similar to this before was the year previously when they’d been old enough to attend their first Yule Ball (they were held every other year so they’d not needed to worry this year). Instead, they’d chosen to stay up in the dorm together and eat Pepper Imps and play Exploding Snap so neither of them had needed to ask a partner. 

“I dunno, can’t think of anyone.” Albus brushed the question off. “I suppose you would’ve asked Rose?”

“I’m sure she’d have said no anyway.” Scorpius had spotted Rose in the distance, chatting to some Gryffindors. “At least this way, I’ve saved myself the embarrassment of her rejecting me. Again.”

“She doesn’t know how lucky she is, Scor. Most guys would have given up by now, but you? You’re dedicated.” Albus handed Scorpius a butterbeer. 

Scorpius tried to feel proud that Albus saw his desperate attempts to woo Rose as dedicated rather than downright pathetic. 

“Ah, my favourite Slithering Slytherin Snakes.” A hand clapped each of them on the back and they turned to see James grinning at them. His Head Boy badge was pinned to his burgundy robes, which were almost the same colour as his hair. 

“Hi, James,” Albus said, wincing at how enthusiastically James had greeted him while Scorpius waved. 

“You didn’t bother with partners either then?” He grinned broadly.

“We, er, didn’t know,” Albus said, turning pink. “You mean you haven’t brought anyone? James Potter doesn’t have a date?” 

Albus was nearly as tall as James these days as he stared at his brother in shocked amusement. James didn’t look at all ashamed of this assessment. 

“Alas, the object of my affections has yet to realise how irresistible I truly am. It’s only a matter of time before the Potter charm wears her down.” He winked at Scorpius and Albus frowned.

“Well, feel free to educate me in using that _Potter charm_.” Albus grinned at Scorpius who felt his internal organs perform a series of complicated acrobatics. The Potter charm seemed to be in full working order. 

“Speak of the angel, Juliette!” James was gone as quickly as he’d arrived, approaching the Head Girl with a winning smile, despite her panicked expression at seeing him.

James Potter was a hopeless romantic in many ways, the sort to send a girl bouquets of roses and stand on tables in the Great Hall proclaiming his desire. However, he was also seemingly not one for long term relationships as the receivers of these grand gestures changed consistently. Now he was a seventh year, the other girls at Hogwarts had become wise to his ways, including it would seem, Head Girl Juliette. The incident over the summer with James and the portable silencing charm reminded Scorpius that Juliette probably knew what she was doing. 

“He’s _such_ an idiot,”  Albus commented, watching his brother leave. “I hope Juliette has enough sense to shut him down, otherwise they’re both in for one hell of an awkward year together as Heads.” 

“I think he’s very sweet,” Scorpius remarked, James reminding him of a Knight in a story book he’d once read.

Albus scoffed. “You _would_ , Scor. Speaking of which, here comes Rose.” He waved over Scorpius’ shoulder at the oncoming Rose, who appeared by Scorpius’ side a moment later.

“Hello Al, Scorpius.” She nodded politely and Scorpius blushed. 

“Rose, who’d you bring as a partner?” Albus asked boldly, with absolutely no preamble. 

“Er, Yann. He’s over there.”

“Ah, he didn’t want to talk to us.” Albus nodded in understanding and Rose shook her head fiercely, although Scorpius thought Albus was probably right. 

“Actually, if you _must_ know, I’m not having the best time. He’s really rather an awful partner. I came here to get away from him.” Scorpius felt Albus watching him and he made sure to react in a hopeful and expectant manner. 

“Well, we could have told you that, Rosie.” Albus grinned between his cousin and his best friend and Scorpius laughed falsely. 

“Oh please, like _you’d_ be any better, Al. I didn’t know you knew what dating was,” she spoke disparagingly. “Or has Scorpius been teaching you his tricks of the trade?” She turned to Scorpius with a grin, poking fun at his attempt to ask her out last year. 

“Tricks of the trade? Imagine that, _a dating trade_ , where people could-” he stopped quickly as Albus stepped on his foot in a signal to stop before he started rambling. Albus of course didn’t mind Scorpius’ inner monologues filling the silence, but he had enough sense to know Rose wouldn’t be as appreciative. 

Rose looked him up and down, a sly grin growing on her face. She moved towards him, cutting Albus out of the conversation completely. “Although, if you were to ask me again, you might get a different answer,” she whispered in his ear and pulled away.

“Speak up, Rose, it’s rude to whisper,” Albus said loudly as Scorpius felt himself turn the colour of James’ dress robes. 

“I’ll be over by the drinks table, by myself,” Rose said meaningfully to Scorpius, leaving him stood there in frozen shock. 

“What the hell was that all about?” Albus wondered, taking a swig of butterbeer. 

“I think she wants me to ask her out again.” Scorpius thought the idea sounded ridiculous when he said it out loud, enforced by the pitying look Albus gave him. 

“Scor, I think she made her intentions pretty clear last time. Don’t turn into James.” He nodded to where James could be seen in the distance, furiously polishing his Head Boy badge, a single red rose visible in his other hand. He seemed to be psyching himself up. 

“You didn’t hear her, Al. She said if I were to ask her again, I might get a different answer. Just then! She whispered it to me!”

Albus looked taken aback, as well he might given the history of Scorpius’ fails when it came to Rose. “Girls are so _weird_.” 

“Should I ask her out?” Scorpius asked hopefully. A tiny, almost non-existent, secret and silent, forbidden corner of Scorpius’ brain was working in overdrive, creating an elaborate fantasy concerning Albus declaring how heartbroken he would be if Scorpius asked Rose out.

“Yeah, if you want,” was the reply Scorpius actually got. Because Albus was normal and didn’t have feelings for his best friend. 

“Right, okay, I’ll just… go and do that then.” Scorpius’ imagination was still whirring away, and he stared very hard at the tablecloth he was walking towards, willing the intricate pattern to distract him from visions of walking through Hogsmeade hand in hand with Albus.

Rose beamed at him, the warmest smile she’d ever shown him until then, and he stood in front of her, suddenly very aware of how long his arms were and how his hands seemed to just sort of _exist_ on the ends of them. 

“So, Hogsmeade? After the holidays?” She spoke when it became clear Scorpius wasn’t going to say anything anytime soon. 

“Yes please, er, I mean… Hogsmeade? After the holidays? Would you like to go to Hogsmeade after the holidays? With me after the holidays? Hogsmeade?” 

Scorpius thought he would have sounded less foolish if he’d been speaking Mermish. 

Rose pressed her lips together in amusement. “Yes, Scorpius, let’s go to Hogsmeade together after the holidays. Don’t tell Yann.” And with that, she turned and left him stood at the drinks table. 

Albus was right, girls _were_ weird..

He turned to catch the eye of his best friend, maybe to non-verbally communicate across the room how much he agreed that girls were weird but also that his interaction had been successful. But Albus was nowhere to be seen in the place Scorpius had just left him. 

“Let’s go, Scor.” His voice spoke roughly into Scorpius’ ear as he took hold of his arm and started to pull him towards the exit.

“But we only just- okay.” Scorpius changed tactic when he saw Albus’ thunderous expression. Something had happened which had upset his best friend. 

Albus didn’t let go of his arm until he’d practically dragged Scorpius all the way back to the corridor where the Slytherin common room was located. Scorpius could feel waves of anger and hurt radiating from Albus as they travelled and he could hardly bear to imagine what had happened to cause his best friend so much pain.

“Al, what’s wrong? Please tell me.” Albus slowed down, letting go of Scorpius’ arm as if he hadn’t realised he was still holding it. He reddened and refused to meet Scorpius’ gaze.

“I, er, just asked Thea out to Hogsmeade. I figured, you were going with Rose, I didn’t fancy going on my own, she’s always nice to me at Quidditch practice, and she was sort of there at the time. So I asked her.”

_Albus had asked Thea out, Albus liked Thea!_

“But she said-” he left his sentence unfinished. 

“She said no?” Scorpius filled in delicately, placing a hand on Albus’ shaking shoulder. Why was his best friend so upset about this? He must _really_ like Thea.

“She said, er, she was going with someone else,” Albus replied lamely, turning away. 

“But I thought you kissed her? At the Quidditch party?” _And you two always seem to be together,_ Scorpius added in his head. 

Albus’ head jerked back round and he was frowning deeply at Scorpius. “What? I’ve never kissed Thea.” 

_I’ve never kissed Thea_. Scorpius’ heart soared at this information, although he felt sort of terrible for revelling in Albus’ slight upset. 

“Why did you think that?” Albus looked confused and a bit upset; Scorpius felt guilty for bringing it up. 

“Well, at that party, you were off somewhere with her and then _Lily_ said-”

“Lily?” Albus shook his head. “Scorpius, don’t you think I would have told you if I’d finally had my first kiss?” 

If he was being honest, Scorpius wasn’t actually sure of the answer to that question. He’d just gone several months thinking Albus had kissed Thea and chosen not to tell his best friend about it, even though he and Albus told each other everything. He imagined the situation in reverse, if _he_ had kissed someone, and he found it hard to decide if he would tell Albus or not, mainly because the someone he was kissing in this hypothetical situation _was_ Albus.

“Of course you would have told me, sorry. Lily was very convincing, I sort of assumed.” Scorpius hung his head. 

“It’s okay,” Albus didn’t look happy but at least he wasn’t frowning anymore. “Don’t worry, I’m still on the same page as you. Zero kissing experience here, and that doesn’t look likely to change any time soon after tonight.” 

“I’m sorry, Al.” Scorpius dared wrap his arms around Albus, hugging him in the most platonic way he could. Albus remained stiff and barely hugged him back so Scorpius pulled away. “Sorry.” 

“It’s okay, sorry I made you leave the party.” He turned to give the password to the common room and climbed sulkily inside. “You can go back if you want, I’ll wait up for you if you need me.”

“I don’t mind.” Scorpius trotted obediently at his side, privately thinking he didn’t mind how they spent their evening, as long as Albus was there. “Who’s Thea going with? Cole? They came together as partners.”

Albus looked annoyed. “I didn’t even notice that, shows how much attention I pay. Er, she didn’t say who but I reckon you’re right.” 

Albus stomped up the stairs to the dormitory, wrenching the hangings of his bed back and throwing himself down onto it, still in his dress robes. He was staring into the distance, unblinking, and occasionally muttering to himself. Scorpius hesitated before perching gently on the edge of Albus’ bed, like they were used to doing. He placed one hand comfortingly on his shoulder, hoping this wasn’t crossing a line. 

“Al?” he asked gently. Silence. “I’m sorry she said no, she’s an idiot if she thinks she’ll have a better time in Hogsmeade with Cole than with you.” 

Albus didn’t respond, other than to make a noise of clear disbelief and burrow further down his bed. Scorpius continued to address the back of his dark hair. 

“I’m serious. I’ve been to Hogsmeade with you loads of times now, there’s nobody better. Although, maybe don’t tell Rose I said that.” He attempted to lighten the mood with some humour. It had the opposite effect. 

“Scor, please don’t go on about it,” Albus snapped, turning over in his bed to look at Scorpius. “I don’t want to talk about girls or Hogsmeade.” 

“Okay, sorry.” Scorpius got up from Albus’ bed, feeling rejected. It wasn’t often Albus was in such a sulk he wouldn’t even talk to his best friend. He sadly pulled his dress robes off and started getting ready for bed in the silence of the dorm (Cole was still at the party, Higgs and Pucey were elsewhere).

“Scorpius?” Albus asked after a while of silence while Scorpius changed and Albus stewed. 

“Yes?” He pretended to be collecting something from his trunk. 

“Sorry for snapping at you. Thankyou for leaving with me, sorry I’m such a rubbish friend.” He had turned in his bed so he was looking at Scorpius. 

“You’re not a rubbish friend, you would have done the same for me.”

“I did snap at you though, just then.”

“Well, a bit. That doesn’t make you a rubbish friend though.” Scorpius took a deep breath. “You’re the best friend I’ve ever had.” 

Albus turned pink and muttered something to himself. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My tumblr is littlerose13writes  if you want to come and yell at me for the events of this chapter... 
> 
> So much thanks to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra :) and so much thanks to everyone who has read and commented so far, it makes my day to read and I will always reply :) and thanks for the kudos! They make me happy❤️
> 
> Until Monday! (Unless you’re on tumblr too, apparently I give out minor spoilers there all the time...)


	14. Glitter and Ribbons

_Scorpius,  
It’s nice to be home but I am already starting to go insane here. It’s easy to forget at school how completely and utterly nuts my family are, mainly because I can’t hear Lily singing from the Slytherins dorms. She is apparently preparing some sort of dramatic singing performance which we all have to sit through on Christmas Eve; I am already dreading it. _

_I went flying with Dad last night, just me and him. I thought he’d want James to come too, but he only invited me. He taught me this move he used to use to divert the other Seeker’s attention and he said I can use it to make the Chasers think I’m blocking one ring when really I’m going for the other one. I can’t wait to tell Harper about it! I wonder if James will let me practise it on him…_

_How have you been since you got home yesterday? Well, I hope! When’s the Arrows match you’re going to? Mum says it should be an interesting game._

_Al  
PS I found my hairbrush. Turns out I forgot to pack it back in September… _

* * *

_Albus,  
Your family is wonderfully mad. Lily’s show sounds like a real treat, tell her she can come and perform it again here! _

_Things are quiet here, as usual. My grandparents are coming for Christmas and Dad is stressing about it. I also think he’s worried I’m going to burst into a sudden panic attack any moment. I know because he keeps randomly turning up at my bedroom door to ‘see how I’m doing’ which he’s never done before. It’s quite nice though._

_Flying with your dad sounds fun! I’m glad you got to do that._

_Arrows match isn’t until after Christmas Day. Dad’s money’s on the Tornadoes but I think he might be surprised. What does your Mum think? She’s played them after all!_

_S x  
PS That is the most you thing I’ve ever heard. Your poor hairbrush probably felt so abandoned!_

* * *

_To Scor,  
You are welcome to take my place for Lily’s show and I’ll come and hang out with your dad instead. It’s now been rescheduled to Boxing Day so that her pygmy puff can join in or something? I don’t know, our friend Luna was here yesterday and she’s always giving Lily all these mad ideas. _

_That’s nice your dad cares so much! He’ll come around and realise you’re still the same you, give him some time. Have you told him about your date with Rose yet?_

_We put our Christmas tree up today and James set up this stupid prank where he charmed this pixie decoration thing to follow me around and shower me in glitter every few seconds. I really preferred it when he couldn’t use magic at home. I washed my hair twice and it still hasn’t all come out! You’re lucky you don’t have a brother!_

_Sorry but Mum thinks Tornadoes have it too. What does she know though, right?_

_Al x_

* * *

_Dear Albus,  
Happy Christmas Eve Eve! (That’s the eve of Christmas Eve in case you didn’t know) _

_There’s going to be a pygmy puff singing too? All you’re doing is selling this to me more! You know I think your siblings are wonderful, especially if James is responsible for covering your hair in glitter. Can you ask him to do it again before school starts? I want to see!_

_Am I supposed to tell my dad that I’m going to Hogsmeade with Rose? I feel really silly telling him for some reason, he might tease me. Would you tell your dad if it was you? (Not with Rose obviously, that would be very weird)_

_I will loyally support the Arrows until my dying day! Their starting Chasers are the strongest they’ve ever been this year. Did you hear about their second game against Puddlemere? Scored forty points within the first five minutes! Against Puddlemere!_

_My grandparents arrive later today and I’m dreading it so much. What’s Christmas Eve like at the Potters? Wish me luck!_

_Scor xx_

* * *

_S,  
Nobody celebrates Christmas Eve Eve… _

_Christmas Eve in the Potter house is fairly normal and uneventful, it involves Mum making us take a Christmas card photo next to the tree and I_ still _have glitter in my hair. James is so annoyingly pleased with himself. I might see if I can get Teddy on board to help me prank him back._

_Lily is acting really weirdly, by which I mean more weirdly than usual. She keeps disappearing for long stretches of time and asking to borrow our owl all the time. She wanted to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas this year, which is weird because none of us ever have ever had Christmas away from home. We think she has a secret boyfriend. James intercepted one of her letters to see but it was just from Poppy and was all written in this weird code they use._

_I don’t know if you should tell him. Tell him if you want to? Are you excited for it? I have no idea what I’d do but nobody wants to date me anyway. James somehow found out that I asked Thea out, but he hasn’t teased me about it anywhere near as much as I thought he would. He said he’d been there too, which is fair enough. I hope it’s not weird when we get back to school._

_Speaking of Puddlemere, they offered James a training contract for next season. He’s over the moon and my parents are pleased too. I’m proud of him. (And don’t tell him, but I suppose I’m glad he’s not going to move to California just yet.)_

_Good luck with your grandparents! Just think, it’ll be over soon._

_Can I have some luck too? Tonight is Potter Christmas Eve game night. James is convinced (yet again) that Teddy is going to propose to Vic._

_A xx_

* * *

_Albus  
Your Christmas Eve is ‘fairly normal and uneventful’? I think you’ve forgotten that we’re on your family’s Christmas card list now. The matching family pyjamas are adorable, really set off the glitter nicely. _

_Maybe now is the time to tell you. I sort of told her I wouldn’t but it’s been ages now, I’m sure she won’t mind. I saw Lily in the forest, trying to lead a unicorn away to the castle. She told me she’d always wanted one as a pet but it didn’t seem very convincing._

_Albus, people want to date you! Loads of people, I’m sure! I know not the person you wanted but don’t be so dramatic. I think I’ll wait and see how it goes before I tell Dad. I’ve never been on a date before, I might be awful. I suppose you’ll be seeing Rose over Christmas?_

_Wow! That’s great news for James! Pass on my congratulations._

_My grandparents are here. Grandfather Lucius is basically losing his mind. He kept asking Dad the same questions repeatedly and forgetting where he’d left his wand. He’s been as lovely as ever to me; he asked how I was doing at school and wanted to know what I was predicted in my OWLs, because he said Malfoys should never get anything lower than an E. I thought he might be impressed that I want to be a Healer but he said it was an easy option and a waste of time to be messing around with ill people. Dad told him that he was really supportive of my ambition and he came and found me later and told me not to listen, and that he’s really proud of me for wanting to be a Healer._

_Did Teddy propose? And who won Game Night?_

_Scor xx_

* * *

_Scorpius,_  
Merry Christmas!  
I’m gonna kill my mum for sending you a copy of that card. It was cute when I was five, not anymore. Glitter update: all traces removed, thanks to Uncle Ron coming over and showing me a charm. 

_Yep, Rose is here too. She’s been okay. We played Exploding Snap together and it was sort of fun. We’re going to play Quidditch at some point today with Lil and James and Hugo and maybe our parents so that’ll be fun too._

_A unicorn? Honestly, I should be more shocked than I am. Nothing about my sister surprises me anymore. What’s she playing at? The obvious answer is she’s trying to make herself immortal, but the idea of Lily killing an animal is just impossible. She won’t even eat eggs or drink milk anymore, Dad’s getting so frustrated trying to cook for her._

_Your grandfather is a massive dickhead and you shouldn’t listen to a word he says. You should hear what my mum says about him… You’re going to be an excellent Healer and when he’s in St Mungo’s with some hideous disease you can remind him what a waste of your time it is to be messing around with ill people. Too far?_

_Teddy didn’t propose. James was so excited, I thought he might ask Vic to marry him by accident._

_Who won Game Night? Your best friend, of course!_

_A xx_

_PS. Mum has invited you and your dad to Boxing Day dinner here, if you want to come that is_

* * *

_Al,  
Disappointed about the glitter, I won’t lie. _

_I didn’t think about Lily using the unicorn for anything like that. But if she were trying to become immortal via slain unicorn blood, the perfect cover up would be her family insisting she’d never kill one. Are you totally sure?_

_That made me laugh so hard! I’ve never heard you call anyone a ‘massive dickhead’ before. What a gift! He’s still being obnoxious. Grandma’s alright though; she played chess with me yesterday and asked me about school and being a prefect and everything. It was actually quite nice, but then she noticed I’d had my hair cut and started talking about how it’s less than a year until I turn seventeen and have to start growing it long like Dad._

_Thanks for the book! I’ve been waiting for that title to be available in the library for weeks, and now I have my own!_

_Dad told me that your mum invited us. I’d love to come, but my grandparents are still here then and I doubt you’d want them tagging along. Although I would pay good galleons to hear you call my grandfather a massive dickhead to his face._

_Merry Christmas again (I wrote it enough in your Christmas card, I hope you like your present!)  
S xx_

* * *

_Scorpius, I’m sure my little sister isn’t pretending she doesn’t agree with eating cheese anymore just so she can enter a cursed state of half-living for the rest of eternity._

_I call James a dickhead all the time, although the addition of ‘massive’ is new here. That’s nice about your grandma._

_Hang on, wait, what?! You’ve never told me that you have to start growing your hair when you turn seventeen! Are you gonna have a ponytail by the time we graduate Hogwarts? Can I plait it and tie ribbons around it?_

_Glad you liked the book, I knew you’d been waiting for it to come into the library. Thankyou for my Keeper gloves! They’re really great, and the best part is James can’t pretend they belong to him. Did you think of that when you put my initials on them? Thanks, I love them!_

_Will miss you tomorrow at dinner. We’re leaving for California in the morning the day after so I can’t write as much, but I’ll make sure to send a letter before we leave._  
Merry Christmas!  
Al xx 

* * *

_Al,  
You’re right, it does seem a bit extreme. Do you think we should tell someone or let her get on with it? _

_Haven’t I ever told you that? It’s some stupid Malfoy tradition, but Mum always said I didn’t have to do it and Dad agreed. He said I don’t have to grow my hair if I don’t want to, and I definitely don’t. I think I’d look ridiculous. So no, you cannot tie ribbons around my non-existent ponytail. I didn’t know you could plait hair anyway? Can I put glitter in yours for our graduation?_

_You’re welcome for the gloves! Hope you all enjoy dinner tonight and sorry again I’m not there. Believe me, you’ll be having a much better time. My grandparents leave tomorrow then it’s the Arrows game!_

_Scor xx_

* * *

_S,  
Let her get on with it. The less we know, the less involved we are. She did her singing show thing today and it was truly horrendous. The only good part was when James fell asleep and Lily wrote Jamesy on his forehead and he didn’t notice until after everyone got here for dinner. _

_I reckon you could pull off a ponytail. You’d look even more like your dad, but it could work! But I don’t know if I can still remember how to plait anyway; I haven’t done it since Lily was about eight. Okay, the deal is no ribbons and no glitter._

_We’re leaving ridiculously early tomorrow morning, so the next time I can write will be when we’ve got our portkey. There’s an eight hour time difference but our owl is quite fast so I can still write to you._

_Enjoy the game! Hope you get good seats (silly really, of course your dad got you good seats) and the Arrows win. (I worked it out and the outcome of this game doesn’t affect the Harpies’ chances much)_

_See you when school starts!  
Al xx_

* * *

_Albus,  
I’m not sure when this will reach you, but I hope you’re having a nice time in California. I’ve never been, is it nice? We went to Boston once when I was little to visit Mum’s sister, but I can hardly remember anything. _

_The game was a.ma.zing! We were right near the goals and the snitch came so close to me at one point I honestly think I could have caught it. You might have already heard, but in case you haven’t, the Arrows WON! I told you those starting Chasers were strong, although it was a narrow defeat and Tornadoes aren’t the most difficult team to beat. I had fun with Dad too. It reminded me of before I started school when he used to take me to the occasional Quidditch match._

_Scor xxx  
PS Definitely NO ponytail!_

* * *

_Scorpius  
It’s incredible here! We haven’t been as a family since before I started Hogwarts. Mum’s friends with some Quidditch players we’re staying with, and one of them is going to teach us to surf. They use magic on the boards, a bit like broomsticks but in the sea. Apparently it’s a lot of fun! I bet I fall off so much, but it’s warmer here than in England. _

_I heard about the Arrows win! Don’t underestimate the Potters and Quidditch. An entire breakfast was spent analysing the match. I bet you’re pleased!_

_One day, I want to take you out here. It doesn’t seem like it at first, but it has some crazy magical history to it. Look up the Half Moon Bay Crystal Witches of the 1700s. It sounds like they accidentally started a goblin war!  
Al xxx_

* * *

_Albus,_

_This transAtlantic owling takes so long! Are you even still going to be there by the time this reaches you?_

_I’m glad you’re having a good time! How was surfing? If it’s anything like flying, I’m sure you did very well. Does it feel weird that it’s not cold in January?_

_I can’t wait to get back to school. I finished all my homework days ago and now I’ve run out of things to do. It’s nice to spend time with Dad, but it’s a bit quiet here. I wish there was a way I could be back at school but still see Dad most days._

_Thanks for the homework! I’ll look them up now. I’ve always wanted to find out more about American wizarding history. Do you think I’d survive the sun out there?_

_S xxx_

* * *

_Scor,_

_I was still there when this arrived, I’m now back home. I tried to write at the Portkey office in California but James kept peering over my shoulder and hassling me to play Twenty Questions with him._

_Surfing was actually really fun. I think I was okay at it! I stood up on my board before even James did. Lily was a natural and made us all look bad. The weather was different but I liked it! James got sunburnt on the first day and my freckles are showing a lot. I think the sun’s even made my hair lighter and it feels like it’s grown about four inches in the week and a half we’ve been here. All the surfers from here have long hair, (maybe it’s because of this stupid sun) your dad would fit right in._

_I still have all my homework to do, I really should get on with that. You’d love it out there! You’d just need some serious sun protection potion but I know how to brew it._

_Looking forward to seeing you on Monday, I’ve missed you!  
Al xxx_

* * *

_Dear Albus,  
I am writing this letter the night before we go back to school. I’ll see you in person faster than my owl could deliver this to you. _

_I had my first therapy session today, Dad sorted it out for me and he says I can decide if I want to do another one once I’m back at school. He’s been in contact with Victoire and she helped us find a good match. My therapist is really nice. He says I don’t have to tell him about what happened if I don’t want to, because he can still help me overcome the trauma without having to know what it is. I didn’t tell him much, only a very basic overview, but I think I might tell him more next time._

_He told me it’s important to let any feelings come to the surface and that repressing them is unhealthy and will increase my anxiety. But he said that didn’t mean I have to be having emotional outbursts all over the place. He taught me this technique of allowing my thoughts to exist in my mind, and acknowledging their existence, but then just letting them float by. It was like he knew there was this big, huge cloud of thought floating by with the words_ I Fancy You, Albus _written on it._

_That’s why I’m writing this letter. Of course I’m not going to send this to you. You’ll never see this, I’m going to fold it up and put a sticking charm on it and hide it at the back of my wardrobe. But it feels good to write it down. I’m acknowledging these thoughts and their existence, and this way they can’t have any control over me in a negative way. I don’t know if this is the kind of thing my therapist meant, but it feels right._

_I have a huge crush on you, Albus. I know there’s no chance of you feeling the same way, and I’m scared that if you ever found out, we couldn’t be friends in the same way we are now. I don’t ever want to lose you as my best friend, even though I want more. It scares me a bit because I imagine my future and it’s very difficult to picture one where I don’t have these feelings for you, so I don’t really know what’s going to happen to them. You’ll have a girlfriend soon, and eventually you’ll be in a serious relationship, maybe you’ll get married one day, and I want to still have you in my life as my best friend when that all happens. I don’t know if it’s normal to have a crush on your best friend like this. If I ask anyone, they’d immediately know I was talking about you, Albus._

_Sometimes, just sometimes, I pretend to myself that all the kind things you do are your little ways of telling me that you know how I feel. When you’re so gentle and loving with me when I’m having a difficult time, when you told me I had a good body, or that I look good in green, every time you hug me. I know they’re all your way of showing friendship, but I like to imagine they’re more than that. I sound crazy now I’m writing this down…_

_Now I’m all caught up in this situation to the point where I’m supposed to go on a date with Rose and pretend I still have a crush on her. But it’s always been you, Albus. I wish there was a way to know how you’d react if I told you. Maybe I should ask Ava to use her next Divination homework to find out for me._

_How do you end a letter you’re never going to send? I doubt I’ll ever even read this back._

_Love you, best friend_  
S xxx 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my favourite chapter so far! I hope you all liked it :) let me know in a comment! I love talking to everyone who comments :) also come and say hi on tumblr: littlerose13writes, I talk about SWF wayy too much over there!  
> Thanks again to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for the help and support :)  
> Updating again on Friday (and it’s the date chapter!) ❤️❤️❤️


	15. The Right Person

Scorpius had missed Albus a lot over the holidays. He always missed him when they were apart - after all, they spent nearly all their time together at school - but this was a deeper, stronger sense of missing him. As if the feelings he was finally letting himself feel were manifesting themselves in Albus’ absence, which was why seeing a flash of that dark, messy hair - longer than Scorpius had ever seen it - made his heart leap.

He wanted to go barrelling over and attack Albus with a huge hug, but he wasn’t sure if that was something Malfoy the Platonic could get away with. Albus didn’t seem to have spotted him yet as he laughed easily with Lily and his mum, a yellow pygmy puff perched on his shoulder. 

“Go on,” his dad’s voice said shrewdly, watching Albus too. 

It was at that moment when Albus looked over and lit up when he saw Scorpius. He reached up and removed the pygmy puff, handing it to Lily, and he ran over to Scorpius. “Scor!” he cried happily, throwing his arms around Scorpius in a giant hug exactly like the one Scorpius had wanted to give him. 

“Hi, Albus,” Scorpius held on for just a second and forced himself to pull away. 

“Hello, Albus.” His dad sounded amused for some reason. 

“Hello,” Albus smiled back. “Did you have a good Christmas?” he asked them both. 

“Very pleasant, thankyou,” his dad responded. 

Albus grinned at Scorpius and he noticed the infuriatingly attractive smattering of new freckles over the bridge of his nose. “It’s so good to see you, I missed you.” 

Scorpius felt a swoop in his stomach at the idea that Albus had missed him too, even if he meant it in a platonic way. 

“Behave yourselves this term, boys,” Draco said with a tiny smirk. 

Once they were on the train, before they found a compartment, Albus fixed Scorpius with a very serious look. “Be honest with me, Scor. Was your holiday really okay? Nothing happened?” 

Scorpius frowned. “No, nothing happened. No attacks, nothing bad. I would have told you in my letters.” 

Albus’ expression lifted as they reached an empty compartment. “I know, sorry, just checking. That’s two whole months now, though! I’m so happy for you.” 

“Thanks,” Scorpius smiled and waited until the door was closed behind them. “I saw a therapist.” 

It felt weird to say _my_ therapist when he’d only been once. 

Albus sat down. “How was it?” 

“I liked it,” Scorpius said honestly, choosing to sit beside Albus. “It was nice, helpful.” 

Albus reached out to gently touch Scorpius’ shoulder. “I’m so pleased for you, Scor.”

“I wouldn’t have been able to do it without you, Albus. Thanks for giving the courage to do it.”

Albus went a bit pink underneath his new freckles. “Oh, no, I didn’t really do anything…” 

Scorpius gave him a look and reached into his pocket. “I brought leftover Christmas chocolate!” 

“Excellent!” 

They shared the chocolate and Albus showed Scorpius photos from his trip away. There were lots of James and Lily on a beach, and some artful shots of the sun setting. 

“Albus, you’re not in any of these,” Scorpius commented, flipping through the stack of photos.

“No, I took most of them. There’s a couple Mum took near the end.” 

Scorpius reached the end of the pile and came to a shot of Albus with Lily, a surfboard tucked under his arm and his wet hair swept back from his freckled face, smiling brightly, clearly not aware his picture was being taken. 

Malfoy the Platonic was mightily glad Cole chose that moment to come barging noisily in and sit with them for the next two hours. 

* * *

After only a week of being back at school, the first Hogsmeade weekend was upon them and with it, Scorpius’ date with Rose. The closer it got, the more Scorpius was starting to wish he’d never asked her and he could just go with his best friend like usual.

It hadn’t been until the end of their fourth year that Albus and Scorpius had finally decided to venture into the village and they had been pleasantly surprised to find it was actually as fun as everyone said. 

Scorpius brushed his hair neatly, the way he did every morning. For some infuriating reason, it chose to defy his wishes and stick out on one side, no matter how many times he brushed it into place. He was reminded instantly of Albus and his hair’s wayward habits, although if Scorpius was being honest with himself, everything reminded him instantly of Albus. 

He wished he could do what Albus did and hide his hair under a hat, something Albus managed to pull off effortlessly when he wasn’t in his school uniform (and sometimes when he was). Scorpius pictured himself wearing one of Al’s grey beanies with his own smart, black outfit and grinned at the image. 

Al entered the dorm, wearing the grey beanie Scorpius had been imagining. He’d thrown it on casually, his long, dark fringe poking out adorably at the front, and paired it with his favourite emerald green zip up hoodie and faded, black, fitted jeans. On his feet were a pair of white lace up trainers. He would have looked every inch a muggle if it weren’t for the thick cloak he was carrying, along with his Slytherin scarf; Scorpius suddenly felt incredibly attracted to him. 

“You look-” Scorpius quickly stopped himself from complimenting Albus’ appearance, “ready.” 

“Oh, yeah I’m gonna leave in a minute. Er, are we walking down together? Shall I wait for you?”

Scorpius desperately wanted to say yes, but he hardly thought Rose would be amused if he turned up for their date with his best friend in tow. “That’s okay, you go ahead. Maybe I’ll see you in Hogsmeade?”

“Maybe. I don’t know if I’ll stay long, it’s not much fun on your own.” Scorpius couldn’t help but hear the wistful tone in Al’s voice and he reminded himself that he must be thinking about Thea. Albus seemed to notice his own miserable tone and quickly spoke again. “It’ll be alright, James said he’d meet me for a drink at the Broomsticks, and Uncle Ron will be at the shop. Mainly I want to see Teddy, get this mop sorted out.” He grinned, pointing at his hat-covered hair. 

Scorpius wanted to tell Albus not to cut his hair; he secretly loved Al’s hair when it was long enough to sweep back from his green eyes. But that would hardly be a platonic thing to say, nor would Scorpius explaining how much he one day wanted to sweep Albus’ hair from his green eyes himself and kiss him senseless. 

Once, when he’d not been concentrating, he’d told Albus he liked his hair when it was longer. Albus had gone very red and very quiet and Scorpius had rambled for ten minutes about Gobstones in an effort to cover up his mistake. 

“Okay, well I might see you around then. Have a good time!” Scorpius found himself speaking in a small voice as Albus threw his cloak on and left the room. 

Scorpius made a few more unsuccessful attempts to get his hair to behave, then gave up and donned his own cloak and scarf, his nerves building inside him as he left the common room. 

Was it socially acceptable to bring a book with you on a date? Scorpius felt like he needed an option to escape more than ever before.

Rose looked very nice as he approached her in the Entrance Hall. She wasn’t scowling or giving Scorpius a pitying look, which made a nice change. 

“Hello, Scorpius,” she said in a friendly voice.

“Hi,” Scorpius squeaked and cleared his throat. 

There was a pause. Was he supposed to hug her? Shake her hand? He’d never hugged Rose before and a handshake didn’t seem right either. 

“Shall we go then?” She grinned and led the way outside. 

Was he supposed to hold her hand as they walked? 

Just as he was contemplating this thought, she stuffed both hands into her pockets against the freezing, January air. Scorpius took that to mean no, he was not supposed to hold her hand as they walked. 

“We could go for a drink at the Three Broomsticks?” Rose suggested. “We _can’t_ go there,” she said sternly as she saw Scorpius glance at the colourful, inviting display of _Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes_ , “my dad will be in there.”

Scorpius gulped and hurried on. Although Albus seemed to really like his Uncle Ron, Scorpius wasn’t sure the protocol for how to behave if he was faced with him in the middle of taking his daughter on a date. 

Or perhaps it was Rose taking him on a date, as it had been her who had initiated the whole thing and now it was her making all the decisions about where they went. He pushed open the door of the Three Broomsticks and held it open for her as they stepped inside. 

The pub was busy, packed with Hogwarts students. Scorpius spotted Lily Potter and Poppy Longbottom whispering secretively and casting furtive glances at a nearby group of boys. At the next table, Thea was surrounded by her Slytherin girls, seemingly having a wonderful time with her friends. She caught Scorpius’ eye and gave him a little wave which Scorpius returned. 

“Can’t I even go on a date without having to compete with Thea Jordan?” Rose rolled her eyes at the interaction and Scorpius immediately felt like he’d been caught misbehaving by Professor McGonagall. 

“Uh, sorry,” Scorpius muttered uncomfortably as they looked for a free table.

“It’s okay, _she_ hasn’t got a date, has she?” Rose grinned and picked a table in plain sight of the Slytherin girls. 

Sat across from each other at the small table, a warm butterbeer in each of their hands, Scorpius realised he really didn’t have much to say to Rose. And as it turned out, she had little to say to him either.

He cast around desperately for some kind of conversation topic. “Have you had any ideas about getting the dress code changed? You know, the skirts and trousers thing?”

Rose shook her head. “No, not yet.”

“Oh.”

Scorpius didn’t know what to say after that; he didn’t have any ideas for the dress code either. 

They talked about Quidditch for a bit, Rose describing a few of her more recent successes as a Beater for Gryffindor and Scorpius nodding along. But as Scorpius was best friends with a member of the rival team, she was careful not to give too much away and the conversation quickly fizzled out. 

“What are you going to get Albus for his birthday?” Rose asked, after a pause that had been just that bit too long. 

“Oh! I’ve had his present bought and wrapped since November,” Scorpius replied honestly. “It’s an extension for his music box, it reads the user’s mood and chooses music for them based on what they want to hear.” 

Rose looked impressed. “I was just going to get him a box of chocolate frogs.” 

As silence settled on the unlikely couple again, Scorpius spotted a flash of dark hair and a Slytherin scarf out of the corner of his eye and, with a jolt, he remembered Albus had said he would be meeting James here too. He casually turned around, on the pretence of scratching his ear, but it wasn’t his best friend at all, just some other Slytherin with dark hair which was far too tidy in Scorpius’ opinion. 

The rest of their date passed in a similar way: Rose would suggest where they went, Scorpius would agree, they would arrive there and have a brief conversation about something, the conversation would die out, Scorpius would become paranoid he had seen Albus. 

It wasn’t until Rose bumped into a huge gang of Gryffindors in _Dervish and Banges_ that she seemed to be having a good time. She was laughing and joking and chattering freely with her friends. One of the friends was holding up some sort of contraption he had just bought as the rest spoke enthusiastically about the ‘wicked game’ they were going to have with it up in the Gryffindor common room. They rushed off, one of them turning curiously to see why Rose hadn’t followed. 

She looked at Scorpius awkwardly. “You don’t mind, do you Scorpius? I’ll catch you later.” She gave him a fleeting hug and ran to catch up with her friends, leaving Scorpius stood there feeling like he wanted the ground to swallow him up.

All Scorpius could focus on was how much he wanted his best friend: Al’s reassuring smile, his kind laughter as Scorpius told him what a disaster it had been, his warm, comforting hugs.

Scorpius trudged glumly up the quiet high street towards _Locks by Lupin_. After the disappointment of not seeing Al anywhere in Hogsmeade that day, he thought it unlikely he’d still be in the village but he wanted to check before he returned to the castle alone. 

The shop was the quietest Scorpius had ever seen it, with nobody in the waiting area. The receptionist smiled up at him as the shop bell rang. There was music playing faintly in the background, a band who sounded familiar to Scorpius as something Albus might have listened to in their dorm. 

He couldn’t see Albus in the shop anywhere, but he could have been round the corner with Teddy, who Scorpius also couldn’t see anywhere.

“Hi, do you have an appointment today?” the smiling receptionist asked him kindly, but she looked a bit confused, probably aware that he did not have an appointment.

“Er, I’m looking for my friend,” he started to explain. “He probably left already, sorry.” 

At that moment, Teddy emerged and greeted Scorpius with a wide smile. Despite only having met the older boy a handful of times that summer while he was staying at the Potters, Teddy was always friendly towards Scorpius. He knew Albus considered him a brother, which was funny because it was actually Scorpius who was distantly related to the metamorphmagus. 

“Hi Scorpius, are you here for a haircut?” Teddy asked him and Scorpius immediately felt self-conscious. Did he look like he needed a haircut? 

“Um, no,” Scorpius replied stiffly, running his hand through the front of his hair. As soon as he said it, he realised it sounded rude. Damn the Malfoy need to be overly polite. “Not that I don’t want you to, er, well, I just got my hair cut in the holidays.” He tried to explain why he’d said no immediately. 

“It looks great,” Teddy said genuinely with a smile. 

“Thanks,” Scorpius replied, reminding himself why he was there in the first place. “Um, is Al here? I know he said he would be at some point and I couldn’t see him in The Three Broomsticks.”

“Hey, Scor.” Albus appeared from where Teddy had also just been. He was looking adorably grumpy and Albus-y, his green hoodie tied around his waist revealing his bright, white t-shirt with the logo of a band he liked. His hair, while not the messy length Scorpius had admired before Albus had left, still made his fingertips tingle when he thought about running his hands through it. It was shorter at the back and long on top and it really suited him quite well like that. It fell into his face artfully and brushed at the freckles dusting his cheekbone. Scorpius caught himself starting to stare and tried to rearrange his face into a casual, I-wasn’t-just-checking-out-my-best-friend expression.

“Hey,” he replied in a small voice.

“Where’s Rose?” Albus questioned, still looking a bit sulky. Scorpius wondered if he was still peeved he’d had to come to Hogsmeade on his own instead of with Thea (or him, but he wouldn’t let himself think that).

“Er, with her mates,” Scorpius replied, the embarrassment of his afternoon washing over him again.

“Good date?” Albus asked, not sounding very interested in the answer. Scorpius felt slightly hurt that his best friend didn’t seem to care about how it had gone.

Still, there was no point in being anything less than honest. “On a scale of one to ten, one being the worst, most awkward encounter you can imagine experiencing, ten being blissful oblivion, better than a thousand sunsets-”

“I get it, Scor,” Albus interrupted him, his expression warming ever so slightly. 

“It was around a minus five.” Scorpius stared at his feet, knowing how comforted he would be if Albus started acting like himself again.

“That bad?” Teddy put in, leaning on his shop counter and giving Scorpius a strange look. “Blimey, I thought Rose was alright,” he grinned.

Scorpius couldn’t have them thinking badly of Rose. “Merlin no! She is, it was all me.” He turned from Teddy to Albus, wanting his best friend to sympathise with him. “Turns out I’m _terrible_ at going on dates. Really, truly awful at them.”

Albus looked at him briefly, his eyes still giving away a hurt Scorpius couldn’t explain.

“Maybe you haven’t been on a date with the right person yet?” Teddy mused, and unbidden to Scorpius, a vision came to his mind of going on a date with _Albus_. Sitting cozily opposite _Albus_ drinking butterbeer, agonising over whether to hold hands with _Albus_ as they walked down the street, going to all of _Albus_ ’ favourite places because Scorpius loved to see the smile on his face when they visited the apothecary that hardly any students went to, huddling together to keep warm outside the shrieking shack and maybe, just maybe, sharing a kiss with _Albus_. 

“The right person, maybe,” Scorpius mumbled, willing the image to go away before he said something stupid. “No offence to your cousin, Al. It’s not Rose’s fault. I’ve never been on a date with a girl before and I’m not sure I’d want to again.”

He wondered if Albus picked up that he meant he wasn’t sure if he’d want to go on a date with _any girl_ again. Albus wasn’t looking at him though. 

“How was your Hogsmeade visit?” Scorpius changed the subject from his disastrous date, relaxing a bit and leaning against the counter.

“Okay,” Albus replied, mirroring his movement and bringing them closer together. “Didn’t do much: saw James in The Three Broomsticks, said hi to Uncle Ron, came here and got my hair cut.”

“It looks very nice,” Scorpius said quickly, hoping this sounded as platonic as he wanted it to and didn’t give away just _how_ attractive he thought Albus was. 

“Thanks.” Albus ran a hand through his dark hair and looked up at Scorpius through his eyelashes. “Wasn’t really as good as Hogsmeade normally is though.”

“No,” Scorpius agreed, feeling a bit reckless. “I suppose I missed hanging out with you.” What he wanted to say was _I missed you_ but that didn’t seem platonic enough. 

Scorpius didn’t miss the sudden grin that took over Albus’ sulky face, which he quickly tried to conceal. “Did you?” 

He looked adorably vulnerable in this question, giving Scorpius the confidence to tell Albus some of the truth. “Yeah, I really did. I was on my disastrous date with Rose, and all I could think about was how much fun Hogsmeade usually is with my best friend.”

Albus’ posture relaxed at Scorpius’ words and Scorpius felt pained that Albus might have thought he didn’t want to spend time with him. 

“So, will you be going on another date with Rose?” Al teased, sounding more like himself.

Scorpius laughed, pleased that his best friend was back. “Absolutely not. Al, you would have found it so funny, there was a point where _nobody spoke_ for ninety-two seconds! I counted! Neither of us could think of a thing to say, I felt like a goldfish, just opening and closing my mouth. It was hideous!”

Albus joined him in his laughter, shrugging his cloak back on to leave. “See you later, Teddy! Thanks for the haircut.” 

“Bye, Teddy,” Scorpius said as he left the shop side by side with his best friend. 

“So tell me more, Romeo,” Albus said keenly, bumping his shoulder into Scorpius’ side. Scorpius responded by messing Albus’ new hairstyle up with his hand and Albus grinned and ducked away from his reach.

Scorpius talked him through the catastrophe that had been his date with Rose, leaving out only the parts when he thought he’d spotted Albus. He told Albus nearly everything, right up to the point before Rose had abandoned him in _Dervish and Banges_ to go off with her Gryffindor friends. “It was a disaster from start to finish, I’m sure she’s wishing she’d never gone with me.” Scorpius tried to evaluate his feelings towards this fact. While he was still crawling with embarrassment at the whole thing, he also felt distinctly _relieved_ that there was no chance Rose would want another date with him. 

“Well if she is, she’s an idiot.” Albus sounded a bit fierce and Scorpius gave him a questioning look. “She shouldn’t be messing you around like that,” Albus said softly. 

He knew he’d been kidding himself more or less the whole time, but he’d thought maybe he’d have so much fun with Rose he could learn to like her in that way. It was with that thought that Scorpius considered what would have happened if it had gone well and Rose had wanted _another_ date, what if she had really enjoyed herself and he’d just been using her the whole time? Scorpius decided with that horrible thought that enough was enough and he wasn’t going to involve anybody else in his crazy, weird feelings for his best friend.

“Maybe that’s just what dates are meant to be like?” Albus joked, the grumpiness he’d displayed back in Teddy’s shop long gone. “I wouldn’t know, I’ve never been on one. Rose was right, I barely know what ‘dating’ is.” 

“I don’t understand why you haven’t. You’re amazing at Potions and you’re on the Quidditch team and you’re funny and you care about others and-” Scorpius abruptly stopped himself before Malfoy The Platonic was overpowered by Scorpius-who-fancies-Albus. 

Albus had gone quiet and was looking at his feet as they walked. “You’re a good best friend, Scor.” 

“I’m not just saying that because I’m your best friend, Al. It’s all true! Do you know I once overheard a group of girls in our year all discussing how much they wanted to date you?” Scorpius had never shared this with Albus before, mainly because it reminded him that they’d also described his best friend as ‘cold and unfriendly’, but he felt it was the right time for Albus to hear it.

“Did you?” Albus sounded uninterested, as if he thought Scorpius had made it all up. 

“Yes! I think you could… I think you could have anybody you wanted if you put your mind to it.” 

“Because it went so well the last time I asked someone out?”

“Albus, stop! Thea only said no because she was going with someone else.” Scorpius said this quickly, a sudden realisation flashing before his eyes. Because he’d _seen_ Thea hadn’t he? And she definitely wasn’t on a date with anybody else. So why would she say no to Albus? Why would anyone say no to Albus? 

Albus grumbled and said nothing, Scorpius decided not to reveal he’d seen Thea.

“You really like her, don’t you?” Scorpius was afraid of the answer.

Albus looked up from his feet, an uncomfortable expression on his face. “No. I don’t actually fancy her. It just seemed like a good idea at the time.”

Scorpius internally scoffed at his best friend’s stubbornness but he let his expression soften, telling Albus it was okay to feel the way he did. “Albus, it’s okay if you do. I mean, you were very upset when we left Slughorn’s Christmas party.” 

There was no other explanation for how upset Albus had been that night when Thea had turned him down (apparently by lying to him, which Scorpius was not happy about). 

“I wasn’t… That’s not… Have you ever had a crush on anyone other than Rose?” Albus asked in a very small voice.

Scorpius considered his words. _Yes, I have a huge crush on you, stronger than anything I’ve ever felt for Rose._

“It’s hard to know, what are crushes supposed to feel like?” is what he settled on instead. 

“Mum once said it’s when you look at them or think about them and it feels different than with anyone else. Is that how it feels when you look at Rose?”

Scorpius considered Ginny’s words but not in the context of looking at Rose. They seemed to perfectly explain how he had always felt when he thought about Albus, what he had first thought was just how friendship felt. They definitely didn’t describe his feelings towards Rose; those were more nervous and fearful and desperate to impress her and failing miserably every time. 

“I’m not sure, maybe not.”

“I told her that didn’t make sense because, when I looked at Gonçalo Flores playing Quidditch, it felt different to watching anyone else. But, well, I couldn’t have had a _crush_ on him, could I?”

“Couldn’t you? People do that don’t they, have crushes on other people who are the same as them. You know like girls having crushes on girls, or boys having crushes on boys.” _Or me having a crush on you._

Albus nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah of course they do! Mum and Dad’s friends are married and they’re two boys. But I was so young, only eight.”

“Oh I see! Well, what about when you watch him play Quidditch now?”

“He’s been retired for several years,” Albus explained, looking suddenly gloomy. 

Scorpius’ stomach lurched: was Albus implying what he thought he was? He didn’t say _I wouldn’t have a crush on him! He’s a boy and I’m not into that_.

“So, do you think you have a crush on Thea?” Scorpius knew the answer, but he sort of wanted Albus to admit it to him.

Albus shook his head fervently. “No, I told you I don’t fancy Thea.” He sounded genuine, which didn’t make any sense.

“You don’t?”

“No. In fact, I have no crushes on any girls. I don’t think I know _how_ to have a crush on a girl.”

Scorpius froze. No, he couldn’t mean… Albus wasn’t trying to say… there was no way he was saying…

“Y’know, ‘cause they’re so _weird_ and everything. I’m sure James would find it easier if he didn’t like any girls.”

 _What about liking a boy?_ Scorpius asked in his head, trying to pluck up the courage to say it out loud. But he couldn’t quite bring himself to vocalise this thought, and instead Albus tailed off, leaving a companionable silence between the two of them. 

They didn’t talk about dating anymore after that, as Albus was reminded of a hilarious story from practice he hadn’t told Scorpius yet, involving Cole and inside-out Quidditch robes. 

But Scorpius couldn’t help but feel as if something had shifted between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is Scorpius right? Has something shifted between them? Let me know your thoughts!   
> As always, huge thanks and love to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for being wonderfully helpful❤️  
> Come and say hi on tumblr: littlerose13writes, and while you’re there check out cherrydore and the beautiful artwork she’s created based on Sweeter Than Fiction (and her other art which is also beautiful)   
> Until Monday, have a lovely weekend all!❤️


	16. Listen To Him

When Scorpius woke up on Sunday morning, his head was buzzing with thoughts already, as if he’d been deep in thought in his sleep and waking up had interrupted him. It took him a second to place the unsettled feelings of uneasiness he had woken up with, then he remembered the day before: his disastrous date with Rose (which he really wasn’t sure how he was supposed to feel about), finding out Thea, who he trusted and liked, had lied to Albus, and then Albus admitting he’d never had a crush on Thea anyway. 

It was all getting to be a bit confusing. Scorpius partly wished to go back to how things were before, when they had no other friends and his feelings for Albus stayed firmly in his own head.

He pulled himself out of bed and dressed for breakfast, throwing a tiny glance Albus’ way but knowing full well he wouldn’t wake up in time for breakfast; not on a Sunday. Albus hadn’t closed his hangings all the way and Scorpius could see his sleeping form, looking peaceful and sweet, his dark hair now too short to be overly messy, but it still managed to stick up on one side.

As if he could sense Scorpius watching him, Albus stirred and rolled over in his sleep, hugging his pillow to his chest and making a little content noise. He didn’t take up the whole width of the bed by any means, and Scorpius had a sudden urge to climb in beside his best friend. Of course he didn’t, and instead left for breakfast to the sound of Higgs’ obnoxious snoring. 

Sunday breakfast was always a quieter affair than in the week because lots of students, like Albus, chose to skip it altogether. The usual place of the Slytherin fifth years was home to Cole, who was dipping his spoon back and forth into a bowl of cereal but not eating anything. He glanced up when he noticed Scorpius and gave him a small smile. 

“Morning, Blondie.” 

“Good morning. Er, are you okay?”

Cole dropped his spoon and pushed the cereal away from him. “Yeah, just a bit… Today’s my grandma’s birthday.” 

“Oh!” Scorpius stiffened slightly. “I’m sorry. It’s hard, isn’t it?” 

“Just making me think about her more than usual, that’s all. I miss her. She used to play Celestina Warbeck songs at full volume on her birthday. Last year, she sent me a howler which was just a recording of her singing along to _Cauldron Full Of Hot Strong Love_ so I wouldn’t miss out. It was hilarious.” He laughed lightly. 

“She sounds great,” Scorpius grinned. 

“She is, was, she is. A small part of me keeps checking the post owls, as if she might be sending me another one today, even though I know it’s impossible.”

“I know that feeling,” Scorpius said quietly.

Cole mused for a second. “I think maybe I’ll go for a run, see if Al wants to come.”

“He’s still asleep,” Scorpius told him. 

“I’ll go by myself then. Unless you want to come?” 

Scorpius shook his head. “I don’t run.” 

Cole grinned. “Fair enough. See you, Blondie.” 

Scorpius was quite enjoying a quiet breakfast by himself, his thoughts still churning over the conversation between him and Albus yesterday and trying to place why he felt so unsettled about the whole thing. He was not too happy to be interrupted by Thea crashing down in the seat beside him and clattering around, making tea.

“Good morning,” she said loudly and Scorpius scrutinised her, as if looking for clues as to why she had lied to Albus. 

“Hi,” he said in a small voice.

“I need to switch out my rounds in a couple of weeks, I’ve got this thing with my dad. Want me to switch with Rose so you can do rounds with her instead?” She winked and Scorpius felt a twinge of annoyance; couldn’t she stop meddling for once?

“Switch with whoever, I really don’t mind.” He wasn’t able to be outright rude to her, but he knew he didn’t sound like himself. 

“Okay.” she smiled warmly but Scorpius felt his heart clench when he remembered she had lied to Albus. 

“I’d better go. Homework.” He left her with this feeble excuse and scurried away as fast as he could. 

* * *

He was writhing in pain, every vein and nerve twisted in agony, this was the end of everything. This was how he was going to die, from this unbearable pain. And he could hear a cry, his name, who was calling his name? They wanted to help him, save him from the pain. It was Albus. Albus was calling his name, Albus wanted him to stop hurting. But if Scorpius stopped hurting, Albus would have to hurt instead. No. Albus couldn’t hurt. 

“Scorpius,” a soft voice whispered. 

Mum.

He was dying, he was starting to die, falling slowly from life. That was why he could hear his mother, he was going to join her. Hearing his mother’s voice and the unimaginable pain wracking through his body brought Scorpius to tears. Hot, wet tears that ran down his cheeks as he continued to writhe in pain. He was going to die, and then Albus was going to hurt too.

“Scorpius? Scorpius!” His mother sounded panicked, worried, the pain was fading, he couldn’t feel it anymore. “Scorpius, wake up!”

His vision blurred and then everything got darker. A face swam into view above his head. Albus’ face, staring at him in deepest concern.

He’d had a nightmare. Another nightmare about Delphi torturing him, for the first time in _months_. 

Albus said nothing, just staring down at Scorpius who felt vulnerable as he started to come around, lying in his bed with the covers twisted away from him, revealing his t-shirt and boxers. He stared right back at Albus, not knowing what to say or do and just wanting the pain to go away. 

Without a word, Albus pulled the remaining covers away and climbed into the bed beside Scorpius. 

He was wearing dark pyjama bottoms but he didn’t have any kind of top on. Scorpius could feel his arm brushing against Albus’ bare chest, muscular from his Quidditch training. Albus was looking at him, his green eyes shining in the moonlight. 

He brought a hand up and very gently wiped tears away from Scorpius’ cheek. Ordinarily, this sort of contact from his best friend would have sent Scorpius into a frenzy, but he was too distressed to focus properly. All he wanted in that moment was to be comforted by Albus, the only person who would understand what he had just seen. 

“I’m sorry, I’m _so_ sorry,” Albus whispered and he reached down and pulled the duvet over both of them, his body still angled inwards towards Scorpius. “You’re safe here.” 

“I heard Mum,” Scorpius admitted in a choked whisper, feeling fresh tears fill his eyes and willing them not to spill over.

Albus didn’t say anything, he just reached out and took Scorpius into his arms. Scorpius felt himself relax against Albus’ chest as he wept, and Albus held on, cradling his head and stroking his hair soothingly. Scorpius couldn’t say how long they stayed like that, only that he fell asleep to the sound of Albus’ heartbeat.

Scorpius awoke early, realising straight away that he was too hot. The source of the heat became immediately apparent as he breathed in and felt something tickle at his nose and mouth. 

It was hair. Dark, messy hair. 

Albus was asleep next to him. Not just next to him, _curled into him_. Scorpius’ arm was around his back and Albus was holding on to Scorpius’ middle. They must have fallen asleep while hugging. Scorpius remembered he had had another nightmare, and Albus had made him feel better enough to go back to sleep. 

But now, he was Malfoy the Platonic, sharing a bed and cuddled up with his best friend in a way he had only ever imagined before. 

This had gone far beyond the realms of platonic best friends comforting one another. Last night, Scorpius had needed his best friend to calm him down. He hadn’t been thinking about it at the time, but now it was morning, he realised he would have expected Albus to return to his own bed once Scorpius was asleep. He definitely wouldn’t have expected Albus to stay in his bed _all night_ and that they would wake up cuddled into each other. 

The dark hair moved as Albus stirred and Scorpius instantly panicked. Because how on earth was he supposed to react to waking up snuggled into his best friend without giving away his feelings? He sat bolt upright, the sudden movement waking Albus quickly who blinked up at him bleary eyed. 

“Morning, Scor,” he whispered casually, as if it was totally normal for them to wake up within inches of each other. “What you doing up there? S’cold.”

Before Scorpius had time to process what Albus had said or come up with an appropriate reaction, Albus _held onto his hand - held his hand!_ \- and pulled him back down next to him. He didn’t curl into Scorpius’ side again but he tucked his knees up so they were pointing towards Scorpius and placed his head flat back against the pillow. Scorpius lay stiff as a board, Albus’ breathing becoming steady as he promptly fell back asleep. 

What was going on?

Albus had woken up, seen he was in Scorpius’ bed, and not only stayed put but pulled Scorpius down to join him again. Was that platonic behaviour? A part of Scorpius’ mind was yelling ‘no!’ but the rest was saying ‘it doesn’t mean anything, don’t overthink this’. 

He watched Albus sleeping peacefully, his expression angelic and calm, the tiniest of smiles playing at his lips. His dark hair was rumpled from sleep, a lock falling softly over his eye and just brushing his lightly freckled cheekbone. Albus still had some colour to him from his trip away at Christmas; his tanned shoulders were invitingly warm beside Scorpius’ own chilly ones.

He couldn’t help it; he shifted himself gently, resting his head against Albus’ shoulder. Albus moved in his sleep and threw an arm over Scorpius’ chest. Scorpius grinned to himself, enjoying the feeling, even though he knew Albus was unconscious and unaware of what he was doing. He wouldn’t let himself fall asleep, he would just enjoy the feeling of lying here, not platonically,  with his best friend for a second.

It was a rare occurrence that Scorpius indulged and really let himself _feel_ around Albus. For once, Malfoy the Platonic was far, far away and Scorpius was imagining falling asleep in Albus’ arms every night. 

Eventually, reality crept into Scorpius’ fantasies and he was forced to act accordingly. As sunlight weakly broke through the lake water at the window, he knew their dorm mates would start waking up soon and he didn’t want to answer any questions about what he and Albus were doing cuddled up together. He tore himself away from his best friend and left him peacefully sleeping in his bed, heading straight for the shower and deciding on an early breakfast. 

He was one of the only Slytherins awake and at the table; breakfast had only just started. He wasn’t eating though, instead half-heartedly sipping coffee and reading. He didn’t normally drink coffee but his early start drove him to it. Scorpius’ mind wasn’t on his book and was instead on Albus and what had happened the night before and his ever growing feelings. 

“You’re up early,” a voice broke his trance and he guiltily looked up from his book, wondering if anybody had noticed he hadn’t turned the page nearly the whole time he’d been sat there. 

“Oh. Morning, Thea. Couldn’t sleep.” She was bright-eyed and not yet in her school uniform, instead wearing her Quidditch training kit. “I could say the same to you.”

She brushed his comment off with a wave of her hand. “I’m always up this early, I like to run drills before breakfast.” Scorpius nodded in understanding, admiring her dedication to Quidditch and then remembering he was still cross with her for lying to Albus. 

“Well, feel free to join me.” He waved his hand politely at the empty seat opposite, abandoning the book he hadn’t been paying attention to. 

“What are you reading?” she asked curiously, peering at the title as he closed it. 

“Oh, nothing.” He hastily hid the book in his bag, not wanting her to look too closely. The book Scorpius was reading was _Northanger Abbey_ by a Muggle author and it had been his favourite when he was younger, but it would probably be considered to be an odd choice for Scorpius to read classic Muggle literature. 

She sensed he didn’t want to share and didn’t press it, instead spooning herself some porridge and tucking in. Scorpius watched her, sipping his coffee and feeling guilty for eating breakfast with someone who had lied to his best friend. 

“How did your date with Rose go?” she asked conversationally and Scorpius was completely thrown off. He had almost forgotten he’d been on a date with Rose only two days before, so much had happened between him and Albus since then. 

“Er, not great. I’m an awful date.” He lit up with an involuntary grin. “Hey, that rhymes.”

Thea looked sympathetic. “I’m sure you’re not! What makes you say that?”

“She left me in Dervish and Banges when her Gryffindor friends showed up,” he said casually with a laugh. 

“She did _what_?” Thea had a very dark expression on her face all of a sudden. 

“It’s fine, I really don’t mind. It wasn’t really going all that well, I don’t think there’s much of a connection between us.” 

Thea looked like she hadn’t even heard him and Scorpius was eager for the conversation to move on. She muttered to herself and went back to her porridge. 

“How was your Hogsmeade trip?” Scorpius tried to change the subject. 

Thea looked up in surprise and shrugged. “Fine, pretty normal. I just spent it with my friends.” 

There went the excuse that she’d been meeting her date after Scorpius saw her. 

“Why did you lie to Albus?” he blurted out before he could stop himself. 

“I’m sorry, what?” Her spoon was halfway to her mouth and she looked genuinely confused. 

“You lied to him. You told him you were already going to Hogsmeade with someone when he asked you out. I saw you in Hogsmeade, you weren’t with anyone else. Why did you have to lie to him, Thea? He’s my best friend and he’s a great guy and he just wanted to go to Hogsmeade with you and there was _no need_ to lie to him just to let him down gently. What if he found out?” Scorpius said all this very quickly, a surprising streak of confidence in his voice. 

Thea lowered her spoon and pushed her porridge to one side, surveying Scorpius over the table. “Is that what he told you I said? That I was already going with somebody else?” 

“That _is_ what you said. We left Slughorn’s party and he told me. He was devastated.”

Thea’s expression was calm and giving nothing away. “This was Slughorn’s party when you asked Rose out?”

Scorpius nodded angrily, not wanting to be reminded. “You know it was.” 

“And you think he was devastated because of me?” 

Thea must have taken a bludger or two to the head in a recent game because she was acting so densely for someone so intelligent. Of course Albus had been devastated because of her. She lied to him and rejected him! 

“I know he was, I walked back to the common room with him. I’ve never seen him so upset.” Scorpius didn’t understand how Thea could think she hadn’t upset Albus that night. He had quite literally stormed out of the party and stayed in a foul mood all night because of her, and now it turned out she’d been lying anyway. 

“Does he like me then?” 

Scorpius spluttered at Thea’s words. “What? Does he…? That’s not the-”

“Al. Does he have a crush on me? You’re his best friend, I’m sure he’d tell you.” She asked this question very bluntly, without a hint of embarrassment, as if she couldn’t care less what the answer was. 

Scorpius hesitated. Albus had admitted he didn’t have a crush on Thea. So why _had_ he been so upset that night? 

“Well, no he doesn’t. But… but you rejected him! That’s why he was so upset.” Scorpius’ coffee had gone cold but he held onto the cup protectively. 

“ _So upset_ because someone he doesn’t fancy rejected him privately where nobody else could hear?” Thea reasoned with the tone of voice one might use to calm down an overly-emotional toddler.

Scorpius had to admit it didn’t make a lot of sense. 

“But you still lied to him! Why did you really say no? Even if he doesn’t fancy you, you didn’t know that when he asked you out.”

“Yes I did, Scorpius. I knew there was _no way_ Albus Potter fancied me.” She was still using that annoyingly calm tone, as if she couldn’t understand why there was anything to disagree about. 

“ _How_ could you have known? I didn’t even know until Saturday!” 

“Look, I didn’t ever tell Albus I was going to Hogsmeade with somebody else.” She had started to look uncomfortable. 

“You didn’t? You just said no because you ‘knew’ he didn’t fancy you?” He used air quotes to express how ridiculous he thought this idea was. How could Thea know something about Albus which Scorpius didn’t? “Then why did he storm out?”

“I said something else… something else which upset him. I didn’t mean to, I wasn’t trying to be hateful. He probably didn’t want to tell you what I said, so he made up that I’d said I was going with somebody else. But I didn’t lie to him, I promise. I’m not like that. I know you didn’t really know me before this year, but I’m not.” 

So Thea hadn’t lied to Albus, but by all accounts, Albus had lied to _him_. 

Thea sounded like she was telling the truth as she gazed at him pleadingly. It was the first time Scorpius had ever seen her not totally and completely in control of herself. Instead, she looked nervous.

“What did you say to him?” he asked in a very small voice, thinking she probably wasn’t going to tell him. 

“That’s up to him if he wants to tell you.” 

Scorpius nodded, wondering how that conversation might go down given the events of the night before. _Morning Al, nice cuddle we had last night in my bed. Anyway, just wondering what Thea said to you which upset you so much you lied to me about it?_

He was hurt that Albus had lied to him about whatever Thea had said. They didn’t have secrets from each other; Albus knew everything about him, even the really horrible, embarrassing stuff like his panic attacks and stupid nightmares.

“I’m sorry, Scorpius. He’s really special to you, isn’t he?” She spoke in a gentle voice. 

Scorpius’ head jerked up at her words, looking for underlying meaning in them. Albus was so special to him, the most special person in his life. But he certainly wasn’t about to go confessing that to Thea who had so far caused nothing but trouble. 

“He’s my best friend,” he said shortly, getting up to leave. He no longer wanted to be sitting there with Thea. “I need to go to the library.”

If she thought it was odd to be visiting the library in the middle of breakfast, she didn’t say anything. Instead she gave him a sad smile. 

“Listen to him, Scorpius, he’s trying to tell you.” 

Scorpius stopped in his hurry to leave the table. “Tell me what?” 

Thea shook her head and went back to her porridge, indicating that she wouldn’t say anymore. 

Scorpius stalked off to the library, fury rising within him. _Stupid girls and their stupid, cryptic, weird things they say which don’t mean anything and they go around upsetting my best friend and Albus lied to me and he never lies to me and he woke up in my bed this morning but it didn’t mean anything and I love him and Thea’s an idiot._

He barely noticed himself arrive at the library, throw himself down at the nearest table and hide his face behind his book. He got so lost in his fictional world that the bell for the start of lessons didn’t register immediately and he had to run to make sure he wasn’t late for double Muggle Studies, the only subject he didn’t take with Albus, who did Arithmancy instead.

Muggle Studies did nothing to improve Scorpius’ mood. Usually it was a subject he found fascinating, but today’s study of various muggle public transport systems and their pros and cons wasn’t enough to keep Scorpius’ mind from the confusing state it was in. He couldn’t even enjoy discovering that ‘the toob’ Arthur Weasley had told him about over the summer did exist underneath Muggle London. 

While Professor Frobisher explained the difference between a tram and a train, Scorpius drifted away and began to scribble on the back of his notes. He drew a little stick wizard, and then he added a broomstick in its hand, and a bubbling cauldron at its feet, and some scribbly hair on top. The little stick wizard stared at Scorpius and he realised who it looked like. He quickly made the hair long and wavy, and added over the top glasses, and a Hufflepuff tie. 

Now it just looked like a stick version of Albus in a weird Halloween costume. 

Scorpius scribbled over the picture until it was just a dark patch of ink. 

_Listen to him Scorpius, he’s trying to tell you._

_What_ was Albus trying to tell him? What had Thea said which had upset him? What was so important that he needed to tell Scorpius by means of some obscure code? 

Maybe he enjoyed California so much at Christmas that he was planning to move there permanently and transfer to Ilvermorny. He did keep complaining about the cold weather and only yesterday he’d said James would move there if he didn’t get a place on any British Quidditch teams. 

But that had nothing to do with Thea, and Scorpius couldn’t think of a way this fact could have allowed Thea to upset Albus. 

Maybe he’d felt weird that Scorpius had asked Rose out, and Thea told him she’d said yes and that’s what upset him. He asked her out, and she said no and then also told him Scorpius was going with Rose. 

But how would Thea have found out?

Neither theory held much stead at all. Maybe he was-

“Scorpius, are you paying attention?”

Scorpius jerked back into awareness. “Oh, um, yes.”

“Could you please read the passage from the textbook entitled _Bus Stops?_ ”

Scorpius tried to push all thoughts from his mind and located the right paragraph, starting to read aloud.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BIG STEPS FOR SCORBUS  
> What do you think: did Albus lie to Scorpius? Or is Thea lying to him? 
> 
> Shoutout to shushubytheshore for the idea of which book Scorpius was reading at breakfast :) check out her fic about it!   
> Thanks as ever go to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for beta-ing❤️
> 
> Say hi on tumblr:littlerose13writes (Also if you’re interested in a visual for Al’s new haircut there’s one on there!) 
> 
> Have a great week, loves! See you Friday!


	17. Unforgivables

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: this chapter contains descriptions of a panic attack

Scorpius skipped break altogether and arrived at the greenhouses for Herbology early. Professor Longbottom was already there, preparing a row of terracotta plant pots by filling each one with soil.

“Ah Scorpius, you're early. Do us a favour and help me out would you?” and he handed Scorpius a sack of soil and pointed to the other end of the row. “We’re repotting mandrakes today, I'm not sure my second years did a great job this morning.”

“Ear muffs then, sir?” Scorpius noticed a pile in the corner.

“Exactly.” He clapped his hands with delight.

Scorpius had filled five pots with soil by the time Professor Longbottom went to open the door to allow the rest of the class to file in. When Albus arrived, he caught Scorpius’ eye and gave him a small smile. Scorpius wasn't sure whether to return it or not and in his moment’s hesitation, Albus turned away and started talking to Professor Longbottom.

Scorpius stared at the back of his head, trying to come to terms with the anger he was feeling. Was he angry with Albus? Not really. Hurt that he'd been lied to? Yes. But never angry. Was he angry with Thea? Maybe a little bit, for stirring all this trouble up, although it wasn't really her fault.

_Listen to him Scorpius, he's trying to tell you._

As Thea’s words replayed in his mind, he realised he was mostly angry with _himself_. Because he didn't seem to know his best friend as well as he thought he did. And he was supposed to be Albus’ best friend but he clearly wasn't listening to him enough that he'd needed to lie to Scorpius about whatever had upset him.

Professor Longbottom wrapped up his conversation and sent Albus to his usual place next to Scorpius. Albus stood as far away from Scorpius as he could, and didn't catch his eye. He stared resolutely to the front as Professor Longbottom spoke and, as soon as he could, shoved his earmuffs on so Scorpius couldn't speak to him.

Repotting the mandrakes should have been hilariously enjoyable - the plants looked like ugly babies and they liked being tickled and cooed over - but Albus’ sullen presence meant the experience wasn't much fun at all. They hadn't said two words to each other the entire lesson and Scorpius was miserable, barely concentrating on Professor Longbottom’s instructions as the lesson went on.

When the mandrakes were all repotted and the earmuffs no longer necessary, they were asked to answer some questions from their textbooks. It was tense and awkward, neither of them wanting to be the first to speak to the other, even though there was a quiet hum of chatter around them (Professor Longbottom wasn't one to insist on silence).

“I'm sorry,” Albus muttered eventually. “For last night, I'm sorry, I know you're angry with me, so sorry.” There was silence for a second, Scorpius didn't look at Albus.

“I'm not angry with you,” he whispered so quietly Albus didn't hear him.

“But… Scorpius, it was only _me_? You don't have to be embarrassed or anything. I won't do that again if you don't want me to. I just don't know how to help you when that happens. Tell me how you want me to help you and I will.”

He couldn't stay staring away from him any longer, instead looking into his best friend’s eyes which were filled with hurt and apprehension. Scorpius’ heart broke and he momentarily forgot all about Thea and the fact that Albus had lied to him.

“You _did_ help. Normally I… usually I’m not able to sleep again after… that happens. But last night I did. You have nothing to be sorry for. Thankyou, Albus.”

He noticed the tension mostly leave Albus’ shoulders. “When I woke up and you weren't there and then you weren't at breakfast, I thought you were really cross with me.”

He meant Scorpius wasn't there in the dorm like normal, but what Scorpius heard was _when I woke up and you weren't there… in bed with me._

Were they just going to brush over the fact that he'd stayed in Scorpius’ bed long after Scorpius needed him?

“Er, no. I'm not cross with you, I promise. I woke up early so I had breakfast before you were up and went to the-”

“Library.” Albus grinned at him. Scorpius nodded.

“But, where were you at break? And just then, at the start of class, you looked so _angry_ when you saw me.” Albus still looked concerned.

“Just, feeling a bit shaken up. I'm not angry with you, please don't think that.” _No, I'm just angry with myself for apparently not understanding you as much as some prefect we only met this year._

“I don't blame you, mate. I know you just want to be on your own sometimes, but if you want to talk about it, you know where I am. And if you'd prefer to never talk about it again, that's fine too.” He smiled encouragingly.

“Thankyou,” Scorpius said honestly. “Same to you too, you know, if there's ever anything you want to talk about.” _Like what Thea said that upset you._

“You're a good mate, Scor.” Albus grinned as the bell rang and they gathered their things together to leave for the next lesson.

Scorpius’ worries about what Albus was hiding from him took a momentary backseat during Defence Against the Dark Arts.

Professor Creevey was sat on his desk looking very serious when they entered the classroom after Potions. The reason for his severity became clear when he stepped to one side and the blackboard read _To explain the societal impact of the classification of the three Unforgivable Curses._

“Okay, so you all know what the three unforgivables are and the basics of what they do. As you know, our new Defence curriculum is about understanding the impacts of using magic and what our responsibilities are. Today, we're going to be considering what the unforgivables mean for wizarding society.”

There had been a bit of resistance to the Ministry’s new curriculum originally (including from Scorpius’ Grandfather Lucius but nobody took him very seriously since Azkaban had weakened his mind so much) but fortunately, the majority of the Wizengamot could see the benefits of educating young witches and wizards in the morals and ethics behind using magic. Scorpius found it highly interesting.

“Last week, we looked at the Imperius curse and I asked you to prepare a response to the following questions.” He waved his wand and words appeared on the board:

_What message is it giving that we, as a society, have decided it is illegal to control another’s mind?  
Is this message followed through in all other areas of our world?_

“Please share your responses with the people on your tables.” Professor Creevey waved his hand to signal them to start talking then rose from his desk to circulate amongst the class.

Scorpius and Albus shared their table with two Hufflepuff boys, and as Professor Creevey often asked them to work like this, they knew the boys fairly well. One of them was the Keeper for the Hufflepuff Quidditch team and the other was Vice President of Charms Club.

“I think we can all agree the message given is our minds and our decisions are our own and it's a hideous invasion of privacy to invade them,” Jacob Finch-Fletchley (Charms Club) started to say to general nods.

“Agreed,” said Benedict Bones (Keeper).

“But it's bullshit that we see that in all other parts of our world! What about all these kids who are brought up thinking their wizard blood makes their lives worth more than a muggle? Or even a muggle-born?” Albus cut across Jacob’s carefully prepared monologue.

“Language, Albus,” Professor Creevey said from behind Albus, who turned with a slightly guilty expression. “But you raise an interesting point. Even without the use of the Imperius curse, it is possible to manipulate the decisions of others. How can we control this kind of behaviour?”

Scorpius felt brave enough to speak up. “It would be difficult. My dad was practically forced to believe in all that rubbish, and even his parents before him were. How is a child supposed to understand that what their parents are telling them isn't right if that's all they've ever been told?”

“Absolutely, Scorpius. If you don't mind my saying so, your father is a prime example of someone whose decisions were made for them, not through a curse but through passed on prejudice and even manipulation. The result of this is children on the verge of adulthood who are convinced these warped views are fact. Unfortunately, these children enter the adult world and perpetuate these views and the cycle starts again. Not many, like your father, Scorpius, see the error of their ways.

“Of course, this can be argued in the reverse. Can we also consider it manipulation to raise children to believe all blood is equal?”

“But that's not manipulation! That's just the truth!” Albus was affronted and looked like he couldn't comprehend what Professor Creevey was saying but Scorpius had understood his point.

“Look at it from my dad’s point of view. He was told his whole childhood that pureblood meant better. Imagine that's all you've ever been told, by parents who love you and you have no reason to distrust. Then imagine one day, you're suddenly thrown into a school where other children are saying the opposite. Who are you going to believe and who are you going to think has just been forced into thinking that by _their_ parents? You're not going to abandon all you've ever been taught at home just because someone tells you to. It would take much more than that to convince you your parents were wrong.”

Jacob and Benedict were looking at Scorpius very strangely with an edge of concern to their expressions. He continued hesitantly.

“Just to be clear, I agree with Albus! It _is_ the truth that all blood is equal and that's what I've been told my whole life by my parents.”

“Even your father?” Jacob muttered under his breath with a look of disbelief.

“ _Yes_ , even his father,” Albus said defensively. “I've met Scorpius’ dad and he'd never say anything against someone just because of their blood.”

Professor Creevey was watching Albus with interest and Scorpius remembered with a jolt that his Defence teacher would have been at school for some of the same years as Draco Malfoy had been. He wondered if the version of his father the professor remembered was rather different from the one Albus was describing (and he knew in his heart of hearts it was).

“So, based on that discussion, is the Imperius curse on the same level as children parroting their parents’ views, however controversial?”

There was a pause while the four of them considered his question. On the next table over, Thea was listening in and she interrupted.

“Sir, what about love potions?”

Professor Creevey’s eyes twinkled and he angled himself so he was between their two tables, engaging both groups in discussion. “I was wondering if anybody would bring those up. Go on, Thea.”

“Well,” Thea began, her eyes shining, “love potions take away the drinker’s ability to make decisions. You could even argue in a worse way than the Imperius curse.”

Benedict scoffed and Thea gave him a cool look.

“I know what she means,” Scorpius mumbled in defence of his friend.

“I could use the Imperius curse on someone and make them give all their money to charity, or brew a life-saving potion. It would still be manipulation, and I agree it’s wrong and should be illegal, but a love potion quite literally takes away the drinker’s ability to consent, yet we can buy them in a joke shop. It doesn’t make any sense!”

“So you’re saying it’s worse to make someone fancy you for a day than to use the Imperius curse to control someone else’s mind?” The Hufflepuff laughed derisively.

“But a love potion _is_ controlling someone else’s mind,” Albus put in. “Like Thea said, someone under the influence of a love potion can’t say yes to anything in their right mind.”

“Which is disgusting,” Thea continued. “Someone could give me a love potion and it would make me think I wanted to kiss them and would allow them to kiss me when I haven’t been given the chance to make that decision for myself.”

“I’ve told Dad he should stop selling them,” a small voice piped up and Scorpius turned to see a sheepish-looking Rose. “He’s looking into some adaptations, but I think they should be pulled.”

Thea narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to speak again, but Professor Creevey interrupted.

“This is a debate we could continue to have for several hours I'm sure, and one which I will endeavour to allow time for in a future lesson. But we must move on to the second part of this topic.” Professor Creevey raised his voice to gain the attention of the rest of the class too. “You know them, Fifth Years, what is the second unforgivable curse?”

“The cruciatus curse, sir,” said a Hufflepuff girl at the front.

“Indeed. Does anyone have any initial thoughts about what we might be looking into? What societal impacts could there be surrounding a curse designed to inflict pain?”

The room was buzzing with anticipation and Scorpius started to feel hot, his jumper prickling against his skin. A hand raised and Professor Creevey chose Thea.

“Wasn't it said, sir, that over half of the convicted perpetrators of the cruciatus curse in the 80s wouldn't have been aware of the curse if it weren't for its publicised classification in 1971?” she spoke clearly and carefully, her voice sounding strangely loud to Scorpius.

“Precisely, Thea. That is indeed one of the issues we will be looking at. Any others?”

Jacob Finch-Fletchley put his hand up. “Sir, I've always wondered, the cruciatus curse is designed to inflict pain, but other curses and hexes can cause pain too. Why is it only the cruciatus curse which is unforgivable? Just as much pain can be caused if one were to cast _incendio_ on another person, or even a tickling charm would be torturous if one continued to use it over and over.”

“You've got _no idea_ what you're talking about!” Albus exploded at Jacob for the second time that lesson. “The cruciatus curse’s entire purpose is to cause unimaginable pain. I could use _incendio_ to start a campfire, of course it's not unforgivable! That comes down to our responsibility to use magic for the right reason. There's no right reason to use a curse which only causes pain.”

Professor Creevey looked keen to diffuse the situation. “Okay, so Jacob and Albus have hit on one of the other big issues surrounding this topic. Why are only these curses unforgivable? Can we forgive pain caused with intent if it is inflicted in another way?”

There were general cries of disagreement. Scorpius felt his breath catch in his throat and he realised he'd been holding it without meaning to while Albus was speaking.

“So your essay question: have we perpetuated a culture of evil-doers using torture by the very classification of the cruciatus curse? To prepare for this, we are going to start today by-”

The rest of his words weren't clear to Scorpius, because all he could feel suddenly was an intense wave of fear. It crashed over his body, as if somebody had emptied a vat of freezing cold water over him, causing his entire body to cry out in pain.

Pain. Torturous pain. The pain curse. _Crucio_.

Scorpius couldn't breathe. The room he was in wasn't safe, there was no air, his lungs weren't working, he needed to get out of this room, to where there was air, he was on his feet but he was shaking, his heart was thumping hard against his chest, it was going to thump through his robes and out onto the floor, he was going to die, his lungs had given up and his heart was about to follow.

“He’s having a panic attack. Scorpius, look at me.” A calm voice came from somewhere extremely far away, not from in this room. Who was speaking to him? Did they know he was about to die?

Something held onto his arms and pulled him forwards firmly. The door, they were leaving the room with no air where Scorpius was going to die. He could still hear his heart, he still couldn't catch his breath. The pounding increased, terrifying Scorpius when he thought about his poor heart beating away at the inside of his chest so fast. Hearts aren't supposed to beat that fast, they aren't meant to do this, Scorpius’ heart was malfunctioning.

“Here goes nothing,” a worried whisper came as if from a great distance away, barely audible over the sound of Scorpius’ pounding heart. Blood thumped against his ear drums, blocking out a loud cry Scorpius couldn't distinguish.

All of a sudden, his heart rate slowed to normal and he could hear and see again. He took in great lungfuls of air, marvelling at how quickly he could regain a sense of himself. It had never stopped that quickly before, did that mean he was dead? Had death caused the abrupt stop to his panic attack?

Scorpius felt warm all over, like he was sinking into a bath. He felt his knees fold in and he sat down on the floor of wherever he was, leaning weakly against the wall behind him and breathing deeply.

Albus was there, staring at him, his green eyes reflecting some kind of silvery glow. Was it wand light? No, it was too blue to be wand light.

“Did it work?” Albus asked, and Scorpius noticed he had his wand out pointing in Scorpius’ direction, though not directly at him. “Do you feel better? Can you breathe? Shall I do the counting thing?”

Scorpius found it was easy to respond, he felt like his panic attack had happened several hours ago rather than just a couple of minutes previously. “I can breathe perfectly. How did that happen? What did you do?”

Albus beamed at him and sank to his knees beside Scorpius. “Look,” he said, gesturing to the space above Scorpius’ head.

Scorpius looked up and understood the source of the blue light. A silvery creature was swirling around above him. It didn't take Scorpius long to realise it was a patronus, some kind of bird, a crow, no, a raven. It was a raven patronus swooping in circles around Scorpius’ head. It fluttered down to rest on his shoulder, the warm feeling increasing when it did so.

“Did you cast this?” he asked his best friend in wonder. Scorpius reached up to stroke the raven and, although he couldn't feel anything, the silvery bird leaned into his touch as Scorpius spoke to it. “Did Albus make you?”

Albus nodded shyly, watching Scorpius interact with his patronus. “I've been learning for a few months now. Dad helped a lot over Christmas.”

“But why?” Scorpius had so many questions, he wasn't sure if he was asking why Albus had learned to cast a patronus secretly or why the patronus was there with them now or why Scorpius felt better so quickly.

“Something Victoire suggested. She's been researching the use of patronuses in mental health therapy and she's developed a theory linking patronus magic to anxiety disorders. She’ll be fascinated to hear about this, actually.” Albus was positively glowing with pride, his raven still bright on Scorpius’ shoulder.

“I've never heard of a patronus behaving like this,” Scorpius marvelled, continuing to rub its beak. “You should be drained of all your magical energy by now, too. This isn't a normal patronus is it?”

“I don’t think so, no. I think it knows why it was created, it's there to calm you down.” Albus was slumped against the wall beside Scorpius now. “Something about the positive force in a patronus which drives dementors away, it can work in a similar way for anxiety. I can't remember everything Vic said now, I'll show you her letter later, if you want?”

“Oh yes please!” Scorpius was highly intrigued to know more.

“Scor, you don't mind that I didn't tell you I was learning this, do you? I didn't want to get your hopes up if it didn't end up working.” Albus looked guilty and worried.

“Of course I don't mind! Albus, you might have just cured me!” Scorpius felt overwhelmed with a joy that was overpowering his embarrassment at his whole Defence Against the Dark Arts class seeing him leave the room in the midst of a panic attack.

“I can't take credit, it's Vic’s research.” Albus shrugged. “There's no guarantee it will always work either, that's why we need to tell her so she can research it more.”

“It was the nightmare. And then all that stuff about my dad. And we were talking about the… the curse.”

“It's okay, I understand.” Albus stroked his hair. “You were so brave, talking about your dad like that.”

He got to his feet and offered Scorpius a hand to pull himself upright but Scorpius didn't have the usual shaky feeling he was accustomed to having after an attack like that. He felt fine as he stood up alongside Albus, smiling down at his shorter best friend.

“Thankyou, Albus, that's the second time today you've been the best, best friend.” Scorpius pulled Albus to him in a hug, this time not their standard platonic embrace but instead a warm, comforting tangle of limbs which brought their bodies close together. Albus hugged him back and they both just stood there holding onto each other for longer than they ever had before. As they hugged, the patronus gradually faded away.

“Love you, Scor,” Albus whispered into his ear in their embrace. Scorpius felt his muscles clench tightly. Albus had never said that to him before; they didn't say that to each other, did they? Was that something best friends say to each other?

In the back of his throat, a casual, throwaway, matching response of _love you, Al_ was preparing itself to be said. He could say it, he could return Albus’ platonic love because he was Albus’ best friend and Albus deserved a best friend who could love him back like a friend should. He could stop there, and not give away his feelings.

The words in his throat morphed of their own accord, taking on a new dimension. _I love you, Al. I love everything about you. I'm in love with you, Albus. I love you and I'm tired of keeping it a secret._

But instead, he said nothing, he kept those words inside, and Albus pulled away from their hug. He kept his hands placed on Scorpius’ shoulders and fixed him with a tender yet very serious look.

“I’m sorry this happened to you today. You don’t deserve this, Scorpius.”

Scorpius almost couldn’t bear the sympathy in Albus’ eyes and he wanted nothing more than to pull Albus close again, to feel his body against him one more time. It was comforting and warm, but it was also not how best friends behave.

“So a raven? That's very cool. Did you know, in Native American tradition, ravens represent courage, self-knowledge and introspection?” Albus was staring off into the distance and seemed to snap out of a reverie as Scorpius spoke.

“Huh? Oh, no I didn't know that. That _is_ cool.” Albus smiled widely as the door to the classroom opened.

It was Professor Creevey, followed by a concerned Madam Pomfrey. “Take as long as you need, boys,” Creevey said with a warm expression.

Madam Pomfrey sighed. “Come on, let’s get you to the hospital wing. Potter, you can come too.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, poor Scorpius :( this is what I call the official start of ‘part 3’ and I’m so pleased we’re here finally!   
> Thanks go to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for the help and support :)   
> Come and say hi on tumblr:littlerose13writes   
> Have a lovely weekend everyone!


	18. Stay

_Dear Dad,_

_I hope everything’s good at home, I miss you. Professor McGonagall asked me how I’d feel about tutoring some third years in History of Magic as a prefect thing. I’m not too sure I’d be any good at that, but I said I’d think about it._

_Anyway, I have bad news and good news. The bad news is that I had another panic attack today, in the middle of a lesson and Albus had to take me outside. I feel so stupid that everyone in my Defence class saw. But the good news is that Albus tried a new strategy from Victoire (he didn’t tell me in case it didn’t end up working) and it stopped the attack! I could breathe again. I’m so grateful that he spent that time learning how to help me._

_Please don’t worry or anything, I’m fine! I’ve been using the strategies Victoire gave me, this was just a one-off, I’m sure! I know you wanted me to tell you though, and I promised I would._

_I miss you, Dad. Love you lots_

_Scorpius_

Scorpius pondered on what he'd just written. Was this what Albus had been keeping from him? Maybe Thea could cast a patronus and she'd been giving Albus secret lessons. Did that mean Thea knew about his stupid panic attacks?

Scorpius miserably remembered that everyone in his Defence Against the Dark Arts class now knew about his stupid panic attacks.

_Listen to him, Scorpius. He's trying to tell you._

Trying to tell him he was learning patronuses for him? Was that it?

He’d always wondered what form his patronus would take if he ever managed to cast one. Knowing his luck, it would be something ridiculous like a pygmy puff or a sea cucumber.

The patronus charm was one of the most difficult charms to get right. It wasn't even taught at OWL level but somehow Albus had learnt how to do it, and he'd learnt it _well_. His raven patronus was clearly well-practised and Scorpius knew that Harry must have helped him get it right.

He tucked the letter into an envelope, balancing it on his bedside table ready to take to the owlery in the morning. A glance at his clock told him Albus was late back from Quidditch practice, but just as this thought crossed his mind, the door slammed open and Albus came stomping in, looking like he could murder someone and heading straight for the other end of Scorpius’ bed.

“Albus… wha-“

“Scorpius!” Albus cut him off, both eyebrows raised as he threw himself down. “Why didn’t you tell me Rose _abandoned_ you in Hogsmeade?”

“Um, well, I didn’t think you would be interested.” Scorpius started to pick at the skin around his thumbnail.

“I knew your date hadn’t gone well but I thought that was just you being awkward! You didn’t tell me how awful she was to you.” Albus stared at him desperately.

Scorpius chewed his lip; maybe he should have been more offended when Rose left, but all he’d felt was a sense of relief. “It’s really okay, we weren’t having a great time and she-“

“Scor, that doesn’t matter! That’s an awful thing to do to you no matter how badly the date was going.” 

“How did you know anyway?”

“Thea told me!” He wasn’t calming down in the slightest. “So I went and found Rose just now and-“

“Albus, you didn’t!” Scorpius hid his face in his hands.

“Yes, I did.” He stuck his chin out defiantly. “She can’t go around doing that to my best friend. I told her it was a shitty thing for her to do and that she should have stuck it out.”

“What did she say?”

Albus’ current state suggested he’d just come from a full blazing row with his cousin. “She said I was right, that she knew she shouldn’t have done it, that she owes you an apology.”

“That was it?”

Albus hesitated. “Y… yeah.” 

“Well, I’m glad she isn’t proud of it.” Scorpius really wasn’t sure how to react.

“Sorry, Scor, but I’m fed up of anyone treating you like…” He stopped speaking and breathed out sharply, playing with the back of his hair for a second. “Sorry, I’m sorry.”

Scorpius hadn’t realised he’d moved closer to Albus while speaking, or maybe Albus had moved closer to him. He didn’t want to dwell too long on the idea of Albus standing up for him like that because it made him want to bury his face in his pillow. “Albus, stop apologising. Thankyou for defending my honour.”

Albus laughed slightly at his words and patted the top of his leg. “Right, well I’m glad we got that cleared up. Um, I’m going to shower.”

He left somewhat awkwardly, still fidgeting with the back of his hair. Scorpius watched him leave.

_Love you, Scor_

Why couldn’t he stop thinking about those words? Malfoy the Platonic was _not_ allowing Scorpius to think about that and interpret those words in any way but the language of friendship.

Later that night, when the dormitory lights were out and everyone else was sleeping, Scorpius’ mind wandered again. He rolled over and hugged the duvet to him, remembering again the overwhelming relief Albus’ patronus had given him. Scorpius stared at the inside of his hangings, realising he was nervous about falling asleep in case he relived his panic attack or last night’s nightmare. He didn't normally have two nightmares in a row, but what if he did tonight?

The day’s events ticked through his mind, starting with waking up cuddled up with Albus, his conversation with Thea, finding out Albus was keeping something from him, the intense discussion about blood purity they'd had in class, having a panic attack in front of everyone, Albus making his panic attack stop instantly with his raven patronus, hugging Albus, Albus whispering in his ear.

_Love you, Scor._

It must have been nearly midnight and he was wide awake, blinking and breathing heavily, tossing and turning, when he felt his hangings rustle. They parted the tiniest bit and Albus poked his head in, looking surprised to see Scorpius staring back at him.

“Sorry, I thought you were having another-” he whispered then paused. “I can hear you moving from my bed.”

“Stay.” Scorpius didn't know what made him say it, this wasn't Malfoy the Platonic speaking. This wasn't even really Malfoy the Anxious speaking. He wasn't on the verge of panic, just on the path to a sleepless but silent night. He didn't need Albus to calm him down.

This was Scorpius Malfoy, who was really just getting tired of suppressing his feelings and even though he didn't know how to tell Albus, had stopped caring if Albus somehow knew. Because maybe that would be easier? If he found out by working it out for himself and then slowly just stopped speaking to Scorpius, instead of Scorpius confessing and Albus directly telling him he was mad and leaving. That might be less painful.

Albus looked at him for just a second, then nodded and pulled back the hangings to climb into the bed. He was wearing a t-shirt with his pyjama bottoms tonight, as was Scorpius, and he shifted under the covers so he and Albus were both lying flat on their backs, staring up at the ceiling.

“Did you have another nightmare?” Albus whispered into the silence of the dorm.

There was a long pause, Scorpius very nearly letting Malfoy the Platonic take over and pretending he had had a nightmare.

“No,” he breathed.

He felt Albus’ gaze on him as his best friend turned to look at him in surprise. Scorpius stared resolutely at the ceiling, refusing to look back at him. Albus gave up trying to catch his eye and turned away again.

“Okay,” he said, and there was another long pause. Then Scorpius felt something brush against his hand and a second later, Albus’ hand was in his, their fingers laced together. Scorpius gasped at the contact, but Albus didn't let go, so Scorpius held on too. 

“Okay,” Scorpius repeated, giving Albus’ hand a squeeze, not even letting himself think about this development, just enjoying it for what it was.

For the second morning in a row, Scorpius woke up warmer than normal with Albus’ dark hair tickling his chin. They weren't cuddled up together like last time, but there was only so much room in a single bed with two people in it.

Unlike the previous morning, Scorpius didn't feel as if he needed to immediately get out of bed for fear of Albus waking up. Had he climbed into Scorpius’ bed under the impression Scorpius had had another nightmare? Yes. But when he’d found out that wasn’t the case, he’d not only stayed but _held Scorpius’ hand._

This was heart palpitation-level stuff and Malfoy the Platonic was quietly crying in a corner.

Having such a tactile best friend really was confusing, because he wasn't sure if Albus considered this normal, friendly behaviour. From Scorpius’ end, it hadn't been at all platonic, asking Albus to join him in bed, but maybe Albus didn't think holding his hand was a big deal, seeing as they were so bunched together in that bed. Maybe it meant more to him than it did to Albus, and maybe that was just going to have to be something he was alright with.

Should he bring it up?

Even considering this for a second filled Scorpius with dread. Because, if he did bring it up, he'd find out for sure it meant nothing and he'd have to stop thinking about it and imagining Albus _wanting_ to hold his hand.

A faint buzzing sounded and slowly grew louder and louder before an alarm was audible. Albus groaned beside him and batted a hand out randomly, almost hitting Scorpius in the face in the process; he wondered if Albus has forgotten he was in Scorpius’ bed.

“Hey! I'm right here,” Scorpius whispered and Al seemed to come to his senses more. He blinked and rolled over, away from Scorpius, leaning out through the hangings towards the bedside table. In the second that he was gone, Scorpius stared at the back of his head and wondered how he was supposed to greet his best friend here in his bed.

_Morning, Albus. Remember when you held my hand last night? How could you forget, seeing as, here you are still in my bed. Is this where you meant to sleep?_

The alarm sound got louder because it was coming from Albus’ wand, which he pulled back inside the darkness of the hangings, shaking his wand violently to turn the sound off. He immediately flopped back against the pillow and looked over at Scorpius with bleary eyes, as if this were a perfectly normal situation.

“Sorry ‘bout that, Scor,” he mumbled sleepily. “Morning. Did I wake you up?”

How could Albus be so _casual?_ Probably because this wasn’t a big deal to him, Scorpius sadly reminded himself. In Albus’ eyes, he’d thought Scorpius needed comfort from a nightmare and then had… held his hand in a friendly way? Fallen asleep by accident?

“Good morning. No, you didn't. Why is your alarm set so early?” Scorpius was careful to make sure he wasn't completely invading Albus’ space, even though they were so close together.

“S’Tuesday. Running day, me and Cole. We’re gonna do it every week.” His eyes were closed and he looked peaceful against the pillow, as if this was the most relaxed he’d ever been.

Scorpius tried to behave as normally as Albus was, as if they were having this conversation in any other setting. Like at breakfast, or in the library.

“Albus Potter is voluntarily getting out of bed earlier than he has to, to go _running with Cole?”_ Scorpius whispered in disbelief.

“You can come too if you want.” His voice was still sleepy but he’d opened his eyes and gave Scorpius a sly grin. “Don't want you to get jealous.”

Scorpius laughed falsely, his stomach churning at the thought of being jealous, as if he had any right to be jealous. “Why would I be jealous? I wouldn't run even if you promised to listen in every History of Magic lesson for the rest of the year.”

“Never,” Albus grinned wickedly and pulled himself reluctantly from the pillow. “See you at breakfast.”

Without so much as a backwards glance, he climbed out of the bed and Scorpius heard the sounds of him dressing, plus a brief, whispered conversation with Cole, who was also bumbling about in the dark.

A sudden thought occurred to Scorpius. Would Cole have seen that Albus hadn't been in his own bed and had instead shared with Scorpius? Would he ask Albus about it? What would Albus say?

What if Cole asked _him_ about it? What would _he_ say?

There was no way Scorpius would be able to sleep again, with all this confusion rushing through him. Plus, staying here in bed was just giving him the perfect opportunity to relive that glorious moment when Albus took his hand over and over again. It was probably best not to rethink that, because it must have meant something so different to him than it did to Albus.

But that didn’t stop Scorpius thinking about it until he couldn’t stop smiling.

He waited until he heard Albus and Cole leave for their run, their voices low and their footsteps light, and climbed out of bed himself, dressing for the day and deciding on an early breakfast.

* * *

Just like the day before, Thea was at the Slytherin table with her Quidditch kit on, looking windswept and like she'd been out in the cold.

“This is becoming a regular thing. Morning, breakfast buddy.” She smiled widely as he approached and gestured to the seat opposite her.

“Hey,” Scorpius fell into it, a smile plastered on his face which just refused to leave. 

“You look like the niffler who got the galleons. Why so happy on this grey morning?” She pointed to the miserable looking sky reflected in the ceiling.

“I slept well.” It wasn't technically a lie. That was the best night’s sleep Scorpius had had all week. The fact that it had taken place in the same bed as Albus was just a coincidence.

“Good to hear, sleep is important.” The way Thea was looking at him made Scorpius feel like she could see inside his brain and sense the true reason he was so pleased. She went back to her copy of the _Daily Prophet_ with a smirk.

“I've worked it out, what Albus was trying to tell me.”

Thea looked up from the newspaper in a heartbeat, casting it aside with elation across her face. “I knew you had! I know that look on anyone. Brilliant, what happened?” She abandoned her paper and clasped her hands together, leaning across the table and peering at him with wide, excited eyes.

“It's a bit embarrassing.” The more Scorpius thought about it, the more sense it made. Thea must have guessed that Albus had used his patronus the day before.

“No it's not! This is so great, and I won't tell anyone else. It’s your news.”

“Right, thanks. Well, you know yesterday, when I had to leave class?” 

“Merlin, Scorp, you worried me so much. Were you okay?”

So it turned out Albus hadn't told Thea why he wanted to learn a patronus. But that would make sense, it was Scorpius’ thing to tell; it would be a very Albus-y thing to keep it secret for him.

“Um, not at the time. I am now. It's a long story, but that's how I found out about it all, what Albus and you have been up to.”

“Albus… and me?” Thea looked confused and leaned back away from him. “I told you yesterday that-”

“Not that. You refusing to teach him if he asked you out. That's why you turned him down, isn't it? And that's why he couldn't tell me because he still wasn't sure it would work.”

“Scorpius, I'm not following this at all. What do you think you've found out about Albus?”

“Patronuses. You've been teaching Albus to cast a patronus, but not in return for a date.”

It dawned on Scorpius in a few seconds that Thea had absolutely no idea what he was talking about.

“I've not got this right, have I?” Scorpius inspected the top of the table.

“Albus can cast a patronus?”

He looked up nervously. “Um, yes, he can. He showed me yesterday. I thought you taught him, I thought that's what he was trying to tell me.”

Thea looked incredibly disappointed and Scorpius felt embarrassment bubble inside him.

“Maybe he was. That wasn't what I meant though.”

“Then _what?”_ Scorpius pleaded with her. “I've been through every possibility and there's _nothing_ else it could be!”

“Nothing?” Thea raised one eyebrow infuriatingly. “Okay.”

“Thea! If you know something, I’d really rather you just-”

“Morning, boys!” Thea said pointedly, focused on somebody behind Scorpius’ back. He knew without turning around that it would be Albus and Cole, because Thea was doing that infuriating look again. “Good run?”

“Freezing.” Albus threw himself down beside Scorpius and reached for the nearest coffee pot. His cheeks were pink and his hair messy where he'd pulled his hat off. He was still bundled up in a hoodie and scarf, his hands in gloves where they gripped his coffee cup. After one sip, he closed his eyes in satisfaction and Scorpius felt butterflies erupt within him.

He was giving no indication that anything had happened between the two of them the night before: no bed-sharing, no hand-holding. But it _had_ happened and Scorpius wasn't sure how to act.

“Well, I feel incredibly unathletic in this breakfast group.” Scorpius spoke in a voice that he wasn't sure even belonged to him; it sounded overly jolly and loud.

Albus laughed naturally and reached across Scorpius for some toast. He smelled like cold weather and the forest. 

“Guess what?” Thea asked and Albus looked up at her, sparing Scorpius a quick _here we go again_ glance in response to Thea’s question.

“What?”

“Freya Everfall’s not playing on Saturday. Hufflepuff’s best Chaser, and she’s been written off by Pomfrey. Something about a bludger injury and it not being safe for her to fly at high speed.”

“That changes things!” Cole exclaimed, looking pleased that Freya Everfall was incapacitated.

“Who’re they playing instead?” asked Albus.

Scorpius eyed him carefully for any signs of embarrassment or regret about the night before. But Albus was acting so _normally._ Everything about him gave no indication he’d spent the night in his best friend’s bed in what was, in Scorpius’ view, far from a platonic situation.

“Rumours are that they’re either playing Jeremy Boot or his little brother, Finley.”

“Jeremy Boot’s the kid who had Dragon Pox, right? He’s still a bit green.” Cole commented.

“Doesn’t stop him being a damn good Chaser!” Thea replied, and Albus looked serious. “He was on the team last year. Finley’s a third year and I’ve never seen him play, but he must be pretty good if he’s anything like Jeremy.”

“How screwed does that make us?” Albus lowered his coffee cup and looked worriedly at Thea.

“Not screwed at all, we can still crush them.” Thea sounded confident as ever.

The Quidditch talk continued as Thea and Cole both tried to give Albus Keeping tips which he was clearly too polite to question. It was interrupted by Rose, who was passing the Slytherin table by herself. 

“Is this a new dress code plan nobody told me about?” Rose stopped behind Thea and eyed them all amusedly.

“Is what a new plan?” Albus looked confused at her words.

“Nothing. It's just, class starts in fifteen minutes and none of you are in uniform.”

There was a collective struggle to get up from the table as quickly as possible as the three Quidditch players left hurriedly.

“Slytherins.” Rose shook her head after them and shared a smile with Scorpius. She hesitated.

“Hi, Rose.” Scorpius started to wave and immediately stopped himself because she was right there and he didn't need to wave.

“Morning. Surprised you're speaking to me.” She sounded a bit disheartened.

Scorpius wondered if he was doing something wrong by speaking to her. “Why wouldn't I be speaking to you?”

“Me. You. Dervish and Banges. Me leaving.”

Scorpius blushed. “Oh, that. I don't mind.”

Rose just looked at him for a second then sat down beside him. “Are you okay? I heard you fainted in class yesterday and Albus had to carry you out. 

Great. The Hogwarts gossip mill wasn't best known for its accuracy, although as he'd been the subject of a much-worse rumour before, it wasn't the worst thing in the world. 

“Not quite. But I'm fine.”

“My brother used to faint randomly all the time, until we realised he’d stolen a whole bag of fainting fancies from Dad’s workshop without knowing what they were. He thought they were just sweets.”

Scorpius laughed politely. Rose paused as if she wanted to say something else.

“Look, Scorpius, I’m sorry.”

“For what?” he asked in shock that she’d just come out and apologised.

“I wasn’t exactly the best date.”

Scorpius wasn’t really sure how to respond. The truth was, she _hadn’t_ been a great date but how was he supposed to know what a good date was like?

“I’m sorry, I was completely messing you around with the whole thing. I shouldn’t have dragged you into it all. That wasn’t fair of me.”

“Into all of what?” Scorpius wasn’t sure if she meant the whole date or one specific location, or something else entirely.

Rose sighed. “It doesn’t matter. Just know that I’m sorry, and I hope you can forgive me.”

Scorpius was completely wrong-footed. Rose was asking for his forgiveness? But he remembered his promise to himself to take Rose out of the picture so now was the time to tell her he didn’t fancy her anymore.

He took a deep breath. “Look, Rose, it’s fine. If truth be told, my heart wasn’t really in it.”

He thought he’d be lifting a huge weight of guilt for her by saying that, because up to this point, she was under the impression he had a huge crush on her. (Scorpius himself had been under that impression for a while too.) But Rose didn’t look relieved or even surprised.

“I know,” she smiled sympathetically and her eyes glinted.

Scorpius spluttered for a second and was saved the task of trying to respond to _that_ by the arrival of Lily Potter.

“A family meeting? Without me?” Lily strode confidently towards them and threw her arms around his and Rose’s shoulder.

“How is this a family meeting? What do you want, Lil?” Rose looked annoyed and shrugged Lily’s arm off.

“Scorpius is part of our family now, Mum says so all the time. Also Poppy got a new boyfriend and I'm bored as heck of hearing about him and watching them snog.” Lily withdrew her arms and wiggled herself in between them on the bench. “How’s everyone doing?” she said in a sing-song voice.

“Spectacular,” Rose said bluntly.

“Great thanks, Lily.” Scorpius smiled kindly.

“I’m surprised you’re not in the hospital wing, Scorp. I heard you went into anaphylactic shock in the middle of class yesterday and Al had to perform an adrenaline charm on you. I didn’t even know you were allergic to banana!”

Scorpius laughed for a second. “Lily, what? I’m not allergic to banana and I didn’t go into anaphylactic shock. Where did _that_ come from?” 

Lily shrugged. “I did think it was weird. You ate my vegan cookies in the summer and they had banana in.” 

“It didn’t also strike you as unlikely that Albus performed a NEWT level Healing charm?”

Rose scoffed. “Uncle Harry taught him that charm in second year.”

Scorpius gave her a confused look as Lily stepped in.

“He promised to learn it when we found out James could die if he ate anything containing peanuts,” Lily explained. “Sweet, hey?”

Scorpius processed this information with some difficulty because it made him want to find Albus immediately and just hug him.

“Al’s never had to use it, James is pretty careful,” Lily chatted away as Scorpius tried to ignore the swooping feeling in his stomach. “Oh look, it’s Willow.”

A tiny owl twittered around and stopped in front of Scorpius, waggling its leg around like it was trying to dance.

“Why is Teddy writing to you?” Lily scooped the owl up and removed the letter, tossing it at Scorpius and tickling the owl under its beak. It snuggled into her hand; the two were clearly familiar.

“He's not, it's from Victoire. We're helping her with something for her dissertation.” 

Lily threw Rose a smug look. “See? Part of the family.” She stood up to leave, the little owl named Willow sat on her shoulder, and patted Scorpius on the back. “Don't worry, that doesn't mean it's weird that you two went on a date.”

Scorpius watched her go, the owl flying around her head like she was the centre of her own personal, feathery solar system.

Rose stood up to leave. “On that note, I'm going. Bye, Scorpius.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All of the thanks as always to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for beta-ing!  
> If you’re from tumblr, I hope you preferred the REAL chapter 18! Speaking of, my tumblr is littlerose13writes (I promise not to prank you guys again)  
> Thanks so much for reading! Let me know what you thought :) hope everyone had a nice Easter weekend, love to you all!❤️  
> Until Friday! Rosie x


	19. Bowtruckles

Scorpius was sitting in his seat for Transfiguration, dreamily waiting for the class to start while he relived the night before for approximately the eighty-seventh time. He thought about the feeling of Albus’ warm body in the bed with him and that wonderful moment when Albus had taken his hand and held onto it. He still wasn’t sure what to make of it, but that didn’t stop him thinking about it over and over again.

When Professor Heinz was just about to start the lesson, Albus clattered into the classroom and whizzed into his seat. If Scorpius hadn’t known he’d only left to put his uniform on fifteen minutes ago, it would have been obvious just looking at him. His shirt collar was half stuck under his green Slytherin jumper, and his tie was lopsided and coming undone. One sleeve of his robe was rolled up while the other was down, and Scorpius would have put galleons on him having odd socks on under his school trousers.

“Made it,” Albus whispered, glancing proudly at Scorpius. He faltered at Scorpius’ expression. “What?”

Scorpius gestured to his own tie and grinned. Albus pushed the other sleeve of his robe up and brought both hands to his collar, which he absent-mindedly straightened while Professor Heinz started their lesson. He undid his tie and started to trying to measure out each end of it, but Heinz noticed he wasn’t paying attention.

“Mr Potter, if you wouldn’t mind saving your wardrobe adjustments for a time when I’m not talking,” she said sternly, peering at him over her glasses. 

Albus’ hand dropped from his undone tie and he muttered “sorry,” awkwardly twisting his hands in his lap.

Scorpius looked at him and then wished he hadn’t. Because Albus was, there was no other word for it,  _ beautiful _ . With his rolled up sleeves and unbuttoned collar and the way his tie hung loosely around his neck, his new haircut -which  _ really _ suited him- and the adorable smile on his face, it was all Scorpius could do not to throw himself at his best friend and kiss him right there in the middle of Transfiguration.

It wasn’t until Heinz set them off completing an intricate diagram that Scorpius remembered Victoire’s letter. Unfortunately, this was also the first time Albus had a chance to fix his tie, which turned into quite a distraction. He flipped his collar up, held one end of the tie in each hand and went cross-eyed trying to watch himself tie it. The resulting knot was too tight on one side and made the tie stick out at an odd angle.

“Is that okay? It’s hard without a mirror,” Albus complained, picking up his quill. 

“Um, not really, and you know what Heinz is like. She’ll take points from you.” 

Albus rolled his eyes and tugged the tie undone again, holding the ends out in front of him. “Help me, please.” 

Scorpius thought that he would have given Albus one of his lungs if he’d asked for it in that moment. He glanced over to check Heinz wasn’t about to start lecturing again, and turned back to Albus who was smiling adorably again, still holding the tie out. 

“Of course.” Scorpius crossed the tails over each other and wrapped it into a neat knot, tightening it against Albus’ top button. He could feel the pulse beating against his Adam’s apple and he tried not to focus on Albus’ jawline, which had the potential to turn him into a puddle on the floor. He carefully reached behind Albus’ neck, unintentionally stroking the back of his hair as he gently flipped his collar back down and smoothed it down at the front.

Albus was completely still, gazing up at Scorpius with that adorable expression again. If he’d had any idea what he was doing to Scorpius in that moment, Scorpius knew, Albus would have stopped straight away. Scorpius quickly started to think about Transfiguration with as much concentration as he could muster, instead of on how Albus had tucked his tie under his jumper and was now playing with the front of his hair, shaking it out with one hand. 

“Stop that,” Scorpius said aloud, without meaning to; his focus on Transfiguration was waning.

“Stop what?” Albus whispered back curiously. 

“Stop playing with your hair.”

“Sorry, I’m getting used to it. Here, feel it. It’s so soft.” He tilted his head forward, offering the top of his hair to Scorpius. 

“No!” Scorpius said, almost sounding afraid. “Er, we should finish our diagrams.”

“Go on,” Albus persisted, pointing at his hair, which infuriatingly  _ did  _ look so soft. “Teddy put this potion thing on it.”

“Albus, we’re meant to be-“

He nearly squeaked when Albus grabbed his wrist and pulled his hand upwards, shoving Scorpius’ fingers into his dark hair. He grinned wickedly up at him through his fringe. “See? Soft.”

Scorpius couldn’t move, frozen with his hand nestled in Albus’ hair and the memory of them falling asleep holding hands fighting its way to the forefront of his mind. He didn’t dare move his fingers, couldn’t bear to feel the impossibly soft strands run past his fingertips. “Very soft,” he squeaked, trying to sound normal.

Albus pulled his head away and grinned.

It wasn’t until the lesson was over and they were walking to Care of Magical Creatures that Scorpius finally had a chance to bring Victoire’s letter up. He reached into his school bag and pulled out the envelope. 

“Look, Victoire wrote back to us.”

Albus looked up, excited. “She did? What did she say?”

“I haven’t opened it yet, I wanted to wait for you. What do you think she’ll say?” 

Albus shrugged. “I hope she’s pleased the patronus worked.”

“It really did! I didn’t even need a calming draught from Pomfrey, but you know what she’s like, she made me take one anyway.” His pace quickened a bit as they walked down a hill. 

Albus looked sympathetic. “Sorry, I thought she might. Was it okay?”

Scorpius nodded. “It knocked me out for a few hours and I had a dream I was made captain of the Hufflepuff quidditch team, but everyone else on the team was a Cornish pixie.”

Albus laughed. “Did you win though? Maybe it was a premonition for Saturday’s game!”

“The dream didn’t get that far,” Scorpius explained as they arrived at Care of Magical Creatures. 

Professor Hagrid was standing beside a large table covered in what looked like a pile of moving sticks, although Scorpius recognised them as Bowtruckles. Albus spotted them too and stiffened; he was anything but comfortable around animals and Scorpius frequently teased him for choosing Care of Magical Creatures as a subject in the first place. 

“Bowtruckles,” Hagrid said when everyone had gathered around him, “are yer project for the next few weeks. Tree guardians, mainly o’ wand wood. I’ve found over the years that they ‘ave a better bond with yer if yer wand is made outta the wood they like best. Can I ‘ave a volunteer?”

A short pause followed and Cole begrudgingly put his hand up, eyeing the long and sharp fingers of the Bowtruckles. “I’ll do it.”

“Okay then, come up to the front ‘ere.” Cole did exactly that and Hagrid beamed excitedly. “What wood is yer wand made of, Cole?”

“Poplar,” Cole said, going to take it out.

“No, no, don’t get yer wand out just yet. You’ll scare them off.” He scanned his eyes over the table of Bowtruckles. “Okay, lemme see, poplar, poplar. Aha! Try holding this one. Two hands flat, that’s it.” 

Hagrid tentatively placed the Bowtruckle into Cole’s hands. 

“Very important not ter squeeze them too tight, they don’t like tha’.”

The class watched the Bowtruckle scuttle up one of Cole’s arms and return back to his hands, sniffing appreciatively. “I think he likes me!” 

“Tha’ one’s a girl, but yeah, she likes yer.” He turned back to the rest of the class. “Eventually, yer’ll be trimming their sprouts, but they have to really trust yer ‘fore yer can do that. Today, I’ll match yer all up with a Bowtruckle and I want yer to draw them as best you can. Homework will be to describe and explain each feature yer draw. Line up ‘ere.”

The Slytherins formed a queue so Hagrid could match them up with a Bowtruckle. Albus was first in the line with Scorpius right behind him. Albus stifled a yawn into his shoulder. Hagrid stared at him. “Did yer not sleep well, Albus?”

“No, I slept really well. The best sleep. Really great.” Hagrid looked at him strangely and Albus smirked at Scorpius. It was the first acknowledgement either of them had made to the fact that they’d shared a bed the night before. Before Scorpius could decide whether he should smirk back - he was frozen and expressionless currently. 

Albus looked back as Hagrid asked, “What’s yer wand?” 

“My wand’s Sycamore,” he told Hagrid, keeping a distance between himself and the moving pile of Bowtruckles and eyeing them a bit warily. 

“I think this one’ll like yer,” Hagrid said kindly, and Scorpius noticed he was much more careful in placing the creature into Albus’ hands than he had been for Cole, cupping his own palms underneath Albus’ until it was clear he’d got a confident grip. 

“Like this?” Albus asked nervously.

Hagrid nodded. “Scorpius, yer next.”

Scorpius stepped forward and held his hand out. “Spruce for me.” 

Hagrid handed him a Bowtruckle too and sent them both off to a clearing where they could draw their creatures. Scorpius’ Bowtruckle was sitting calmly in his hands; it was rather cute with its little leaf-like limbs and tiny face. 

“Can we open the letter now?” Albus asked, keeping a careful grip on his Bowtruckle. 

“Yeah, give me a second.” Scorpius placed his own Bowtruckle down on the table where it lay contentedly, and opened his bag, pulling out parchment and a quill for the lesson, as well as the letter from Victoire. He undid the envelope and removed the letter, placing it flat on the table between their two Bowtruckles so they could both read it. 

_ Scorpius and Albus, _

_ That is amazing news!! Albus, I want to use your account of observing this happen in my dissertation if that's okay? Would you be able to explain a bit more what the patronus was like? You said it was different to a normal patronus, but how so? _

_ Scorpius, if it's not too much trouble, I would love to speak to you more about this experience. Please don't feel you have to, I know it can be difficult to talk about these things, but I promise we can stop at any point. This could be a huge help in curing post-trauma anxiety disorders. I know the next Hogsmeade weekend isn't for a while, but my deadline is looming. Teddy says ask James to tell you how to get here, we promise to cover for you if you get in any trouble.  _

_ Also Scorpius, I run a group, once a month here at St Mungo’s for anxiety and panic disorder sufferers where we get together and discuss self-care. You would be more than welcome to come some time? They're on the first Thursday of the month in the evening, I don't know if you'd be allowed to leave school but maybe in the Easter holidays you could come? It might be helpful for you.  _

_ Love _

_ Victoire  _

Scorpius was quicker at reading than Albus and he watched him finish the letter, wondering if he would have the same reaction as Scorpius did to the suggestion they sneak out of school. 

“Brilliant!” said Albus cheerfully. 

“What does she mean,  _ ask James to tell you how to get here?  _ We can’t sneak out of school!”

Albus looked around them nervously. “Shh, keep your voice down. There’s a way, we won’t get caught.” 

Scorpius stared at him incredulously. “How can you possibly know we won’t get caught?” 

“Because James has been doing it for years and they made him Head Boy,” replied Albus in a bored voice, repositioning his Bowtruckle and picking his quill up. 

“I thought we’d decided we broke enough rules last year when we messed with the very fabric of time?” Scorpius said a bit desperately. 

“Don’t you want to help Victoire?”

Scorpius hesitated. “Well, of course I do. I owe her more than one, but I don’t know, Albus. Sneaking out of school?” 

“Sneaking out of school  _ together _ ,” Albus corrected. 

Scorpius thought about the night before and had to admit that made it more appealing. 

“I want to show Teddy my patronus! I still couldn’t do it properly when he was over at Christmas.” 

“Oh gosh, sneaking out  _ and  _ doing magic outside of school? Albus, you know this kind of thing makes me ill.” He was grinning as he said it.

“You have a trauma-related panic disorder, Scor,” Albus rolled his eyes, “not an allergy to breaking the rules.”

“Actually, I have one of those, too. Last year was very stressful for me,” Scorpius grinned as he picked up his quill, ready to start drawing his Bowtruckle. 

They sat in companionable silence for a bit, sketching their Bowtruckles, which had taken a bit of a liking to one another. They’d each scuttled across the table top and were laying side by side, allowing Albus and Scorpius to draw them. 

“I wonder what my patronus would be,” Scorpius mused as they worked. “I bet it’s something stupid, like a slug.”

Albus snorted. “A  _ slug _ ? I thought mine would be something really embarrassing and James would tease me.”

“A raven isn’t embarrassing. What’s his patronus?” Scorpius’ Bowtruckle turned over to allow him to draw some of its markings. 

“A lion, of course. He’s such a Gryffindor, it couldn’t have been anything else. My dad’s is a stag and mum’s is a horse, and then Teddy’s is a wolf. Imagine if mine had been a guinea pig or something with that lot.”

“I bet  _ mine _ will be a guinea pig now you’ve said that,” Scorpius laughed. 

“What about your family?” 

Scorpius smiled to himself. “Mum’s was a swan, it suited her.” Albus smiled too. “And my dad’s is a scorpion, and Mum always used to tease him and say they’d named me after his patronus so my middle name should have been Cygnus for hers.”

“Scorpius Cygnus Malfoy,” Albus grinned. “Imagine if that was how parents named their kids. James would be Stag Horse Potter! And who knows what I’d be.”

Scorpius laughed. “I really want to know what my patronus would be!” 

“I can teach you the charm if you want! I mean, I'm not an expert, I'll probably say all the wrong things, but I can remember what Dad and Teddy said still,” Albus suggested eagerly, his Bowtruckle sketch forgotten.

“Could you really? That would be so amazingly cool!” 

“Yeah!” Albus lowered his voice. “I don’t technically think we’d be allowed, but we could sneak out to the Room of Requirement or something. We know where it is now.”

“Why is it plans with you always seem to involve some kind of rule breaking these days?” Scorpius sighed and turned back to his Bowtruckle.

What he saw nearly made him choke. His and Albus’ Bowtruckles we’re still laying side by side, but they’d now intertwined their twig-like fingers into what was unmistakably an act of affection. Albus was watching them too and his ears had turned pink.

“Looks like yers are getting on qui’ well,” Hagrid said over Scorpius’ shoulder, making him jump. His black eyes were twinkling merrily. “That’d be an interesting study. Baby Bowtruckles look more like leaves than anything.”

Hagrid gently poked the two Bowtruckles, who had started nuzzling their faces into one another. It would have been adorable if it hadn’t been quite such awkward timing. 

“Ah, no, my mistake. They’re both males, no babies here.”

Albus spluttered and started coughing. Scorpius furiously went back to his sketch, so abruptly that he startled his Bowtruckle and it slashed him painfully over the back of the hand.    
  


* * *

 

Back in the dormitory that evening when they were both getting ready for bed, Scorpius wondered if he should try and ask his best friend about what had happened the night before. He had no idea what the done thing was in this situation; it wasn’t exactly one he’d been in before. He considered asking someone, like Thea, maybe, if this was normal behaviour, but that would also involve having to admit to her that he liked Albus, and he didn’t think he was ready to do that.

He sat on his bed and rubbed Dittany into the healing Bowtruckle cut on his knuckle. Albus, now in his pyjamas, his hair all fluffy and looking unfairly adorable, stopped as he passed Scorpius’ bed. He looked concerned and hesitated. 

“D’you feel okay now? After your, er, thing yesterday.”

“My panic attack, you mean?”

Albus nodded and shrugged. “I don't know how long the nightmares last.”

Scorpius took a deep breath and plucked up the courage to at least hint at the night before. They’d gone the whole day acting as if everything was normal but Scorpius couldn’t just forget about it. 

“Albus, I'm fine. I… I was fine last night too.” 

Albus stopped what he was doing but didn’t turn around from his wardrobe. “I know.” 

Scorpius’ heart was beating fast and he felt his face heat up; he was probably embarrassingly red by now. 

“Do we… do we do that now?” 

“What? I don't know. Yeah, I guess.” Albus spoke as if Scorpius was talking about doing their homework together in the library. 

He climbed into bed but didn't draw the hangings. His body was curled up on one side, the position he usually slept in, and there was a big space beside him. Was he expecting Scorpius to go and fill it? Is that what ‘yeah, I guess’ meant? 

“Don't wake me up any earlier than eight tomorrow,” Albus muttered, closing his eyes and patting the empty space beside him. Scorpius stood still, staring at him. Everything was very much indicating that Albus was expecting him to climb into bed with him too but that was a huge thing to just go and do. 

It wasn't the dead of night. Nobody was having a nightmare. It was the beginning of the night, the dorm lights were still not all out, and they were both wide awake. 

Albus’ eyelids fluttered open, and he looked worried. Before he could open his mouth to tell Scorpius he didn't have to; to make this real and officially happening by talking about it; to force Scorpius to either turn down the offer or admit that he wanted it too; Scorpius shimmied past the half-drawn hangings and fell down into the space. 

Albus smiled and closed his eyes again, his head inches from Scorpius’ on the pillow. Scorpius closed the hangings the rest of the way and settled beside Albus, who reached down and pulled his duvet up and over both of them. 

When Scorpius woke up that morning, Albus’ arm was draped across him sweetly. His best friend stirred and turned over in his sleep, curling up into himself like a baby koala. Scorpius checked his watch then reached out and gently stroked his shoulder.

“Albus, breakfast,” he said gently. 

It was one minute to eight, so Scorpius assumed Albus’ alarm was just about to go off anyway. Really, it was a perfect excuse to give in to the urge to reach out and touch his best friend. 

They’d spent the night in bed together again; that was three nights in a row now, and there was absolutely no platonic excuse for it this time. What did this mean? Albus had made it perfectly clear he didn’t want to discuss it the night before, but surely they needed to talk about what was going on?

Albus groaned and burrowed deeper under the duvet. Scorpius shrugged and waited for the alarm charm to sound from his wand, only it didn’t come. Eight o’clock came and went, and Albus’ wand stayed silent. Assuming he’d forgotten to set it, Scorpius reached out and stroked his shoulder again. 

“It’s eight, your alarm didn’t go off,” he whispered and Albus shuffled around, turning over to face Scorpius.

“I didn’t set it,” he mumbled weakly. “Knew you’d wake me up.” His eyelids flickered closed again.

Albus  _ knew  _ Scorpius would wake him up? How could he know? Scorpius didn’t usually wake Albus up, unless it got to twenty to nine and he still hadn’t shown up at breakfast, which had only happened a handful of times. Had Albus  _ planned _ to share his bed with Scorpius? 

“Albus!” Scorpius said again, and his best friend’s eyes opened again. “So, I’m in your bed and-“

“Okay, I’m getting up,” Albus said suddenly, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. “It’s Wednesday, so Defence first. Have you seen my textbook?” 

He swung a leg over the side of the bed and reluctantly stepped out through the hangings, leaving Scorpius still in his bed realising he’d just been the victim of a subject change. 

They found Albus’ textbook, and Scorpius’ left shoe which had mysteriously migrated halfway under Albus’ bed. Albus perked up considerably after his second coffee at breakfast and they made it to Defence Against The Dark Arts with time to spare. They filed in past Professor Creevey, who was sat on his desk at the front. 

“Scorpius, Albus, can I have a quick word before we start?” he said as they passed. 

Scorpius shared a confused look with Albus and nodded. “Of course, sir.”

Professor Creevey smiled. “I went through the essay question last lesson, but as both you and Albus missed it, I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind stopping by my office this evening so I can go through it? You can both have extensions to hand it in.”

He smiled gratefully. “Thanks, sir. I’m free tonight but I think Albus has Quidditch practice,” Scorpius said, as if he didn’t know Albus’ schedule as well as his own. 

“Yeah I do, sir. At half four.”

“Could you come at four, before practice starts? It won’t take long.”

“Okay, sir. Thanks.” Scorpius blushed a bit when he thought about why he and Albus had missed the essay question the first time round.

Their final lesson that day was Muggle Studies for Scorpius and Arithmancy for Albus, who was planning to dash back to the dormitory to get changed for Quidditch and make it back to Professor Creevey’s office in time. 

After a leisurely stroll from Muggle Studies (a particularly interesting lesson on something called a First Aid Kit), Scorpius arrived at Professor Creevey’s office just in time; Albus was nowhere to be seen. Professor Creevey opened the door.

“Come in, Scorpius,” he said kindly, stepping back to allow Scorpius to pass. “No Albus?”

Scorpius checked his watch anxiously. “He should be along any second, sir.” 

“Maybe for the best. Before he gets here, I wanted to ask how you are today after what happened on Monday,” he said kindly. 

Professor Creevey had come and found them in the empty History of Magic classroom; Albus’ patronus had disappeared by then. He’d sent them off to the hospital wing, and Albus had gone back to class at Madam Pomfrey’s insistence. 

“Oh!” Scorpius hadn’t been expecting Creevey to ask him about it, which he now realised he probably should have. “I’m fine, sir. Sorry I interrupted your lesson.”

“Don’t be silly! You couldn’t help it. It was lucky Albus was there to step in, I gave him fifteen house points when he got back to class.”

“He didn’t tell me that,” Scorpius grinned. 

“Look, Scorpius, I know you had a tough time last year. I just wanted to say, it does get better. The memories and the nightmares and everything else, they will fade away eventually. If you ever need someone to talk to, my door is always open.”

Scorpius didn’t ask how he knew about his nightmares. From the expression on Professor Creevey’s face, it seemed like an educated guess. Scorpius presumed he was referring to the war. 

“Thanks, sir.”

There was knock at the door and Professor Creevey opened it with a flick of his wand. Albus was there, slightly pink-cheeked and looking like he’d just been running laps. He was wearing a grey hoodie with the Keeper gloves Scorpius had bought him for Christmas poking out of the pocket, and he’d tucked the front of his hair into a hat. Once again, Scorpius was faced with the fact that he definitely found Albus extra attractive with his hair pushed back. 

“Sorry I’m late, sir,” he said breathlessly. 

“Only three minutes, Albus. Sit down.” He gestured to the other chair beside Scorpius and Albus fell into it gratefully, pulling his hat off in the process. His messy hair fell into his eyes and he pushed it back, throwing a grin in Scorpius’ direction as if he knew exactly what he was doing to him. 

“What’d I miss?” 

“Nothing, we haven’t started yet.” Professor Creevey handed each of them a piece of parchment. “This is the essay title.”

Scorpius glanced down at it:  _ Have we, as wizarding society, perpetuated a culture of evil-doers using torture by the very classification of the cruciatus curse? _

He felt a little stab of fear again, the wording reminding him of Monday’s lesson. 

“Now, there are several case studies I’d like you to focus on. The first, the Mulciber case of 1976.”

Professor Creevey rattled away about the recent historic cases where people had been sent to Azkaban for using the cruciatus curse, but Scorpius only half-listened. He focused instead on breathing evenly; Albus would tell him what Professor Creevey had said afterwards. 

Only it turned out Albus wasn’t giving their teacher his full attention either. 

As Creevey talked on, Scorpius felt a sudden touch on his left knee. Albus had placed his hand on it, but not in that one-touch-and-then-it-was-gone, friendly way he sometimes did. He squeezed Scorpius’ kneecap gently and comfortingly and then dropped his hand again. It fell and found Scorpius’ under the desk, lacing their fingers together and squeezing his palm in a gesture Scorpius knew was Albus’ way of saying he understood this was hard for him. 

Creevey continued, oblivious to the events happening under his desk. Albus drew little circles over the back of his knuckles and cast him the tiniest of glances, giving his hand another comforting squeeze. 

“Sir, does Scorpius  _ have  _ to do this essay?” Albus suddenly said, speaking in a tone of voice Scorpius had never heard him use to a teacher before. He was still holding Scorpius’ hand under the table. 

“Albus, it’s fine,” he hissed.

“Is it fine though? Professor, you saw what happened on Monday. Writing an entire essay about,” he hesitated, “this curse could be triggering.” 

Professor Creevey looked a bit nonplussed. “Scorpius, I’m so sorry. I had… no idea, didn’t even think it was because of… Will writing this essay be a problem? Please be honest.”

Scorpius took a deep breath and glanced down at his and Albus’ joined hands. “Well, sir, in the name of proper self-care and full honesty, honestly, I don’t think I can write this essay. Not yet.” 

Albus moved his other hand under the table so that Scorpius’ own was sandwiched between them, like he was giving Scorpius’ hand a proud hug. 

Professor Creevey nodded, looking thoughtful. “Okay, thankyou for being honest with me, Scorpius. I’ll find you a different essay title to complete instead.” 

“Thankyou, sir,” Scorpius muttered. 

“Thanks, Professor Creevey,” Albus added sincerely, removing his second hand. 

Their teacher stood up. “Well, I won’t keep you from Quidditch, Albus. Thanks for coming, both of you.” 

Albus squeezed his hand like he didn’t want to let go then dropped it and stood up too; Scorpius copied him. “Bye, sir,” he said, rushing Scorpius out of the office. 

When they were in the empty corridor, Albus threw himself at Scorpius, hugging his chest fiercely and squeezing their torsos together. It was warm and tender and, despite being taller than Albus, he felt comforted and cared for. 

“Struggling to breathe now, Al,” he said after a few glorious moments. 

“Sorry.” Albus pulled away. “I’m really proud of you.” 

“Do you know what? I’m proud of me too,” Scorpius smiled. 

Albus took hold of his hand again and gestured for them to both walk up the corridor. It was the opposite direction to the one it would make the most sense for Scorpius to walk in, but he wasn’t even registering where they were going. He was hand in hand with Albus, in a corridor at school, where  _ anyone _ could see them, and it had been Albus’ idea! 

They’d almost reached the end of the corridor, still hand in hand, when Albus dropped his hand and started to play with the shorter hair at the back of his head instead. “Well, I’d better get to Quidditch. Do you maybe want to watch practice?” 

Scorpius’ eyes widened. Everybody at Hogwarts knew the only people who came to watch Quidditch practice were the players’ significant others. It was practically an admittance of going out with a Quidditch player, attending one of their practices. What was Albus suggesting?

“Maybe some other time,” Albus said hurriedly when Scorpius didn’t respond, and he checked his wrist for the time. “I’m late. Bye, Scor.”

It was only when he’d been stood alone for a second that Scorpius remembered Albus didn’t even wear a watch. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the thanks as always to the wonderful Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for their help and support :) this fic literally wouldn’t exist otherwise!  
> I love talking to you guys on tumblr so please say hello :) I’m littlerose13writes❤️  
> Have a nice weekend, everyone! See you all on Monday :)


	20. Supernova

Ever since he could remember, Scorpius had hated being late for things. He supposed it was something his parents had instilled in him, that it was bad manners to be late. He would rather arrive awkwardly early and hang around waiting than risk arriving late and having to walk in after something had started.

This was the case for the fortnightly prefect meetings he had to attend which always started at seven. So far, Scorpius hadn’t arrived  later than quarter to. This time, it had only just gone half past six, and he was one of only a few people in the Transfiguration classroom they always met in.

“Ju, give me a break!”

James and Juliette were already there and from the looks of things, were in the middle of a bit of a disagreement. Scorpius edged towards his usual seat.

“ _No,_ James,” Juliette hissed with a pointed expression.

“I can’t run prefect detention this week.” James was making no effort to keep his own voice down and he gesticulated at a piece of parchment in his hand. “Look, _Lily Potter_ , it’s on there _twice._ I can’t run detention for my little sister.”

“Yes you can. You’re Head Boy.” Juliette wasn’t even looking at him.

“I’ve done it the past four times! _Please_ will you just switch with me this one week?”

“No,” she said shortly. Scorpius tried to look like he couldn’t hear as he sat down.

“Why not?” James had lowered his voice by now but Scorpius could still hear everything he said.

“You _know_ why.” She sounded a bit nasty, certainly nothing like Scorpius had ever heard before. He looked away from the two of them and caught the eye of one of the sixth year prefects from Hufflepuff.

“Awkward,” the sixth year mouthed and gestured with her eyes towards Juliette and James.

Scorpius nodded gratefully and she shuffled her chair up a bit so there wasn’t such a distance between them. “I’m regretting getting here so early.”

“Me too. Normally, I’m only just here on time because I have to come straight from Quidditch, but I can’t train this week.” She looked glum and Scorpius remembered who she was. This was Freya Everfall, who Thea had said wasn’t playing in Saturday’s game due to injury.

“Um, I heard you were written off by Pomfrey? Sorry about that.” Scorpius hoped she wouldn’t be cross with him for bringing it up.

She ran a hand casually through her blonde hair, almost as light as Scorpius’ own. “It’s my own stupid fault. Got too cocky, ran into a bludger headfirst. Concussion, can’t fly. How’d you hear about it? I didn’t know it was common knowledge.” She frowned in confusion.

Scorpius hesitated. “Er, well, I’ve got a few friends on the Slytherin team.”

Freya’s expression cleared. “Thea Jordan told you,” she grinned and Scorpius nodded. “Nothing gets past that girl.”

“Anyway, I hope you make a quick recovery.”

“So do I,” Freya mused. “I was really looking forward to playing Slytherin too. I love beating Potters, isn’t that right, James?”

She called over Scorpius’ shoulder and he turned around to see James and Juliette had finished their conversation and James was sidling over towards them. “What’s that, Freya the Brave?”

“I was just telling Scorpius I’m disappointed I won’t be playing on Saturday. Missing a chance to beat another Potter.”

“Gryffindor won that game,” James said coolly.

“I know,” Freya shrugged. “Your sister’s a much better Seeker than ours. I’m talking about the quaffle and you know it.”

“Fair play.” He narrowed his eyes at her for a second and grinned. “There’s no way you’d get anything past my baby brother though.”

“No?”

James laughed, although Scorpius didn’t know why. “Have you seen him play?”

Freya grinned. “Yep, he focuses too much on the left hoop.”

Scorpius felt a wave of protectiveness surge through him and he made a mental note to tell Albus what she’d said.

“If you say so,” James replied in an all-knowing, sing song voice, leaning against the table.

“Are you going to watch the supernova tomorrow night?” Freya randomly changed the subject.

“Why, you asking me out?” James wiggled his eyebrows at her.

Freya sighed and looked right at Scorpius. “Scorpius, are you?”

“No? Should I be?” he replied hesitantly.

“If you want! It’s going to be visible around eleven, Sinistra’s doing permission slips if you ask for one.”

“You should drag Al along too, Scorpius. He loves that shit,” James interjected.

Freya rolled her eyes at James’ description of the supernova. “Might see you there then.”

James left to talk to somebody else and Scorpius was left with Freya. They’d barely spoken before now; he usually sat with Thea for these meetings.

“Why does he call you Freya the Brave?”

“Because he’s an arse,” Freya grinned. “No, it’s because of my surname. He says it’s incredibly brave of me to play Quidditch with a name like Everfall. One unfortunate accident and I’ll be ruined for the rest of my school career.”

Scorpius snorted with laughter at this explanation.

“Luckily, Everfall’s never fallen,” she smiled in satisfaction.

“You must be good at Quidditch if you can out-Chase James,” Scorpius said politely.

She smiled. “I think he was having an off day that game. Usually I can’t. Did you know he’s got a Puddlemere contract?”

Scorpius nodded. “Yeah, Al told me. He didn’t seem that surprised.”

“It’s so typical that Puddlemere want James Potter. Now if he’d been scouted by someone like the Arrows-“

“He’s too good for the Arrows,” Scorpius put in.

Freya appraised him coolly. “I’ve supported them since I was little.”

“So have I! They’re my team, but you have to admit they’re not the same since Harrison retired.”

Her eyes lit up and they began an impassioned conversation about the controversial change in the Appleby Arrows’ coach two years ago.

“Do you want to play professional Quidditch too?”

She considered his question. “Not particularly. I want to work with kids, but I’ll probably keep it up as a hobby.”

Juliette went to close the doors, signifying the start of the meeting. As she started to go through that week’s house point totals, the door opened and Thea slipped in, edging round the side of the room and into the seat beside Scorpius. It was only when she was close that Scorpius noticed she definitely wasn’t okay.

For a start, she was shaking with what looked like fury. Her face was set into a hard expression Scorpius wasn’t used to seeing and she was staring, unseeing, at the table in front of her. Her fist was clenched and she was breathing deeply.

“Are you alright?” Scorpius whispered with concern.

Thea glanced at him and nodded, relaxing just a fraction. “Yep, don’t worry.”

James started talking about the following week’s patrol schedule but Juliette interrupted him, saying he was reading from the wrong week. James looked annoyed and the room broke into light chatter as the two of them leafed through sheets of parchment and muttered to each other in annoyance.

“Thea, what happened?” Scorpius said at once and she gave him an annoyed look. He held his hands up innocently. “You know you’d ask me the same thing.”

She smiled, just a tiny bit, but shook her head. “Right now, I don’t need to talk about it. Distract me with anything else. Please?”

Scorpius felt like he wanted to hug her in sympathy for whatever had happened, but as they were sitting down, he patted her shoulder kindly and started talking about the supernova. Thea didn’t seem to be listening but she smiled at him gratefully.

While the prefects chatted, the door opened again, this time revealing Rose, who Scorpius hadn’t even realised wasn’t there. She dropped into the nearest empty seat, clearly uncomfortable at having arrived late.

“So you and Al are going to this star thing?” Thea said suddenly, which surprised Scorpius as he hadn’t thought she’d really been listening.

“What? Oh, yeah. Well, I haven’t asked him if he wants to come yet but I’m going to go.”

“You should ask him.” Thea had a sly grin on her face. “Does he like stuff like that?”

“Er, yeah he does. I think he’d want to see it.”

“Ask him then,” Thea said kindly, almost sounding like her usual self.

Scorpius felt as if there was another layer to her words he was supposed to understand, but all he could come up with was that maybe she wanted to come too and was hinting that he should invite her along with them.

“Do you want to come with us too?” he said hopefully.

Thea shook her head. “Oh no, I’m useless with telescopes. Just bring Albus.”

“Okay,” Scorpius muttered, confused.

“He said you might be coming to practice?” she began and Scorpius’ eyes widened. “I think that’s a good idea; you’d enjoy it.”

What in Merlin’s name was Albus playing at, telling Thea he was coming to Quidditch practice? Scorpius couldn’t remember ever agreeing to that plan, because the implication was not something he was willing to deal with right now.

“Hmm, maybe,” he muttered in a tone he hoped didn’t commit him to anything just as James and Juliette sorted out what they wanted to say next.

“Think about it,” Thea said and turned away from him to listen to whatever James was about to say.

Scorpius found it very difficult to concentrate for the rest of the meeting.

* * *

 

In the common room after the meeting, Scorpius told Albus about the apparent tension between his brother and the head girl.

“I told you he was an idiot for getting involved with her. That’ll be what the problem is, knowing him.” Albus sighed and put down the comic he was reading. “Meeting okay though?”

Scorpius nodded. “Yep, same old. Something’s up with Thea though.”

Albus folded the comic up and placed it on a nearby table, looking pensive. “I thought that too. We were doing our Arithmancy homework together and it was like she wasn’t even here, she barely spoke. I’ve never known her to be that quiet.”

“Did you ask her what was wrong?” Scorpius asked curiously.

Albus looked guilty. “No, I wasn’t sure she’d want me to. I just talked about Arithmancy.”

“Albus,” Scorpius reprimanded lightly and he grinned as if to say _did you expect anything else?_ “She seemed really… angry when I saw her.”

“I hope she’s okay,” Albus mused.

“Not enough to ask her though,” Scorpius teased and Albus had the decency to look a bit ashamed.

“I’m crap at that,” he muttered in excuse. “Did you ask her?”

“She wouldn’t tell me,” Scorpius replied.

“There you go then,” Albus said.

There was a pause and Scorpius tried to work out why he felt nervous about what he was about to say.

“Apparently, there’s a supernova passing by tomorrow night which we’d be able to see with my telescope. I think I want to go.”

Albus had a blank expression on his face. “Yeah there is, have a nice time.”

Why did this feel like he was asking Albus out on a date? He was suddenly incredibly anxious about his best friend’s response.

“I think I want to go… with you.” Scorpius fiddled with the fastenings on his cloak. “If you… if you want to come.”

Why did he word it like that? _I think I want to go with you._ Now it _really_ sounded like he was asking Albus out.

A small smile appeared on Albus’ face. “I want to come,” he said, rather quietly.

There was a pause and Scorpius couldn’t take his eyes off his best friend, whose green eyes were suddenly the brightest thing in the room. Something passed between them in that moment, and Scorpius almost couldn’t bear it.

“Great, we just have to get a signed permission note from Professor Sinistra to leave the dorm after hours.” He broke the silence, speaking louder than he normally would have and making Albus jump.

“Aw, no invisibility cloak sneak out this time?” Albus grinned; everything was back to normal.

As normal as things could be considering Albus crept across the dorm and climbed into his bed again that night, vaguely muttering something about it being cold.

* * *

 

The astronomy tower wasn’t empty tonight, and a few people were setting up telescopes when they arrived. Freya Everfall was one of them and she came bounding over when she spotted Scorpius.

“Scorpius, you came! Come and set your telescope up beside me, I’ve got a really good spot.” She beamed and went to hurry off. “Oh, hi, Al,” she added as an afterthought.

“Er, hi,” Albus stuttered at her retreating figure and looked to Scorpius in mild confusion.

“Freya,” Scorpius hissed and a look of realisation passed over Albus’ features. He nodded in recognition; Albus was really quite terrible at remembering people’s names.

“That’s a nice, fancy telescope,” Freya said as Scorpius removed it from the box.

“Thanks,” Scorpius replied, holding it up to show her. “It was a birthday present from Albus.”

Albus beamed at him proudly and Scorpius couldn’t help but grin like an idiot back. Freya cleared her throat.

“You want to point it north-west,” she explained, holding her eye up to her own telescope.

Scorpius nodded and began to set his telescope up next to Albus’. There was a bit of a gap between Freya’s position and the next telescope stand, but she seemed too engrossed in what she was doing to speak to them much anyway. He was in the middle of setting his own up when he glanced up to see that Albus was already fully set up and had his eye pressed to the telescope. He broke away and caught Scorpius’ eye.

“Don’t point it north-west, go closer to west,” he said softly and shivered lightly. In that moment, Scorpius wanted to wrap him up and pull him close to him.

When both their telescopes were set up, there wasn’t much left to do but wait for the opportune moment where they’d be able to see the supernova.

“How much longer? I have Quidditch tomorrow,” Albus complained but Scorpius knew he would wait all night if he had to.

“Any minute now,” Professor Sinistra’s loud voice carried over.

Scorpius gasped in excitement and pressed his eye up against his telescope, focusing in on the right place in the sky. He could see a star labelled off to one side, but he didn’t want to risk moving his telescope and missing the supernova.

After a few minutes of waiting, it appeared. Bright white with flashes of red, purple and blue, smattered with a galaxy of tiny white stars. It was beautiful and Scorpius couldn’t count how long he’d stared at it for.

“Albus, you have to see this! Are you looking? It’s remarkable!” Scorpius tore his eyes away from the bright colours in his telescope and glanced to one side, where Albus was. He expected to see Albus with his eye pressed up against his own telescope pointed out at the sky. But instead…

Albus’ gaze fell directly on Scorpius, his hands loosely holding on to his telescope. He was undoubtedly staring at him, his eyes wide and soft, his lips just slightly parted. He started when Scorpius looked up, and hastily looked back into his telescope.

“Remarkable,” Albus whispered.

“Albus?”

Scorpius wanted him to look up again and when he did, he looked distinctly guilty and uncomfortable. Scorpius wanted to say something, that it was okay if he’d been staring, that Scorpius himself had been lucky not to have been caught staring at Albus ever before, but before he could find the right words, Albus moved.

He took a fraction of a step forwards, so he was a bit closer to Scorpius, and he reached his hand out towards Scorpius’ forehead. Gently, he brushed at a stray strand of hair that had fallen out of place where Scorpius had been pressed up against his telescope. He loosely tucked it back in with the rest of Scorpius’ hair, his hand lingering for just a second longer before returning to his side. Scorpius didn’t move or speak, but he wanted Albus to know that he liked it when he did things like that.

It was his turn to be brave.

He turned his body to face outwards onto the starry sky; the night was clear and the stars bright at this height. Albus mirrored him and there were just a few inches between their shoulders. Scorpius adjusted his left hand, just slightly, until his pinky finger brushed Albus’. It was subtle enough that Albus could choose to think it was an accident, but to Scorpius’ delight, he moved his own fingers closer. _Do it, Scorpius._

Scorpius lightly laced their fingers together, holding Albus’ hand in his own. It felt just as glorious as it had in his bed, or in Professor Creevey’s office, but this time even more so because he’d been the one to take Albus’ hand.

Albus held on and squeezed his hand gently, placing his eye back against his telescope and continuing to look at the supernova with his hand joined to Scorpius’. Scorpius mirrored him, taking in the stunning colours in his telescope and realising they were fading into insignificance compared to what was happening here on the ground.

* * *

 

_Scorpius,_

_Thankyou for your letter and for keeping me in the loop. I’m sorry to hear that you had another attack, but your letter has intrigued me greatly. Maybe you were tired when you wrote it, but you forgot to mention what it actually was that Albus did to help you. I am, however, very glad that whatever it was worked._

_I am actually going to be at Hogwarts next Saturday to meet with the new Potions professor, the one who is taking over from Slughorn next year. She needs some advice on alchemy and somebody gave her my contact. Honestly, I’m quite flattered. Anyway, maybe we could go for a walk together and talk about this in person? I could take you out for lunch too; Albus would be welcome to join us if he wanted to._

_I love you more every day._

_Dad_

Scorpius grinned to himself when he thought back to the sleepy and confused state he’d written that letter in, so much so that he’d forgotten to actually tell Dad about Albus’ patronus. He was sort of glad he’d get to tell him in person now though; it was so exciting.

A dad who goes for walks with his son and talks to him about everything and takes him out for lunch had, at one point, seemed unattainable to Scorpius. He had always felt he was falling short of Draco’s expectations, and it was only in the last year that he’d started to realise that he was inventing that idea. It was wonderful to know that his dad wanted to do all of those dad-like things with him again, like when Scorpius was little.

“Your dad’s got fancy handwriting,” Imogen commented, glancing briefly at his letter. “Ready to go?”

It was somewhat of a routine now that on match days, Scorpius would eat breakfast with Imogen and Ava and walk down to the pitch with them. He supposed he could count them as friends now too; they were both very nice and Imogen affectionately teased him for knowing so many random pieces of trivia about history.

“What’s my fact of the day?” she asked as they headed outside and across the grounds.

Scorpius pretended to consider it hard. “That in the 1600s, witches living amongst muggles were required to always wear purple to distinguish them to other members of the magical community.”

“Bet the wizards could wear whatever they liked,” Imogen muttered darkly. “What happened if some poor, unsuspecting muggle accidentally wore purple and was challenged to a duel?”

“Apparently that did happen once or twice! Of course this was before the Statute of Secrecy, but I think the muggles just thought we were mad.”

They found seats in the Slytherin stands, which this week contained Lily Potter too.

“Why aren’t you over there with Gryffindor?” Scorpius questioned her.

“Because Gryffindor are supporting Hufflepuff. If they win, our chances for the cup get better.”

“But you’re here,” Scorpius pointed out.

“My _brother’s_ on this team! I can’t support Hufflepuff instead.” She looked at Scorpius like he was stupid.

“Where’s James then?”

Lily waved a hand casually. “Pacing around somewhere stressing about who to root for.”

Whatever decision James made, he obviously decided to stay away from the Slytherin spectator stands, because he didn’t appear and the game started. It was clear Hufflepuff were taking this game seriously.

“And it’s Hufflepuff in possession… Hufflepuff still in possession… still Hufflepuff.” Hugo narrated the quaffle’s journey between each of the Hufflepuff Chasers, who were doing an impressive job at keeping it out of Slytherin’s reach. “They’re doing surprisingly well without Freya Everfall, their usual Chasing star. Captain Allred, has done a good job slotting in third year and first time player Finley Boot.”

The Hufflepuff Chasers got the quaffle to Albus’ goal three times consecutively, and he saved the first two but let the third one in. Scorpius saw him swear passionately as he went diving for the falling quaffle.

The Slytherin Chasers stepped it up after that, and with the help of some well-timed bludgers courtesy of Cole, they pulled it back.

“Thea Jordan scores _again_ for Slytherin, but now it’s Hufflepuff in possession. Finley Boot shouldn’t be a match for Slytherin Keeper Albus Potter.” Hugo hesitated. “Oh. Turns out he _is_ a match for Albus Potter. That’s another goal for Hufflepuff!”

Scorpius could tell, even from so far away, that Albus was getting increasingly frustrated with himself after letting another goal in.

“Don’t be a prat, Al. Just focus!” Lily yelled out to him, but he couldn’t remotely hear her above the crowd.

The score was seventy, fifty to Hufflepuff by the time the snitch came into view. The Hufflepuff Seeker shouldn’t have been a match for Harper, nobody had predicted that at all. But whatever training they’d been doing was working, and the fourth-year ended up stealing the snitch right from under Harper’s nose at the last second.

All the Slytherins around him moaned in annoyance and Scorpius could already hear several people loudly claiming they knew what had gone wrong and what Harper should have done.

“Did you see Potter miss that second goal too? That would have made a difference if he’d saved that.”

Scorpius felt annoyance flare up inside him, but Lily got there first.

“I’d have liked to see _you_ save that, _Herbert_.”

“It’s _not_ Herbert,” the Slytherin third year retorted and Lily glared at him. Scorpius decided to slink away before wands were drawn.

Down on the pitch, the Slytherin team was landing and gathering into a quiet huddle, some of them throwing annoyed looks at the celebrating Hufflepuffs. Harper looked like he’d been slapped with a wet fish, and Albus looked so miserable it broke Scorpius’ heart to see.

As Scorpius approached his best friend, Harper was finishing some sort of impromptu pep talk. “Potter, shut up with the self-pity. You didn’t just have the snitch stolen from right under your nose. This doesn’t mean our chances are over, we just have a lot of work to do. Come to training ready to work hard this week, no excuses.”

Harper turned on his heel and strode away and the team dispersed.

“I was rubbish,” Albus lamented almost the entire way back up to the castle, despite Thea and Cole’s insistence that he’d played fine and it wasn’t his fault they’d lost the game. They didn’t know Albus as well as Scorpius did, who knew his best friend wouldn’t be happy until he’d thought it all to death twice over.

By the time they went to bed amidst the half hearted attempts of some sixth years to still have a party, Albus was starting to come out the other side of his bad mood. Scorpius passing on some of the more entertaining moments in Lily’s own commentary certainly helped; they included a detailed breakdown of why Finley Boot’s head looked like a turnip which would distract _any_ Keeper.

Despite this, he still insisted on moping around, only perking up the smallest of amounts when Scorpius found some Pepper Imps in his trunk and opened them, sat cross-legged next to Albus on his bed, both in their pyjamas.

“You know when you just want to sleep so the day is over and you can start again?” he groaned.

“Albus, it really isn’t that bad,” Scorpius tried to reason.

“I know, sorry, I’m just in a mood now.”

“Really? I hadn’t noticed,” Scorpius rolled his eyes.

Albus let a shadow of a grin cross his face. “Can you just let me be grumpy for a bit? I promise I’ll have snapped out of it by tomorrow.”

“You have my full permission to be grumpy,” Scorpius put a hand over his heart, starting to get up from the bed to leave Albus alone in his grumpiness.

“Where are you going?”

Scorpius hesitated. He had been about to say: _to my own bed so I can let you be grumpy like you asked,_ when he realised that wasn’t what Albus meant. He wanted him to stay, in the way that was becoming normal.

“Just, er, getting my wand,” Scorpius muttered. He crept across the dorm and retrieved his wand from his cloak pocket where he’d left it. Pucey caught his eye and narrowed his eyes at Scorpius, who shrugged and made to get back into Albus’ bed, acting as if he was just sharing sweets with him and not planning to spend the night there.

“We don’t mind, you know,” he said, nodding to Albus’ bed and going back to his comic.

Scorpius hurried away before Pucey could say anything else.

Inside the hangings, Albus was buried under the duvet, only the very top of his head poking out. He turned mournful eyes on Scorpius, who climbed into bed beside him.

“Thanks, Scor,” he said miserably. “You’re the best.”

He shuffled over and pressed his body up against Scorpius’ side, evidently looking for comfort from his best friend. Scorpius reached out with both arms and pulled Albus in so his head rested against his chest. He could probably hear how fast Scorpius’ heart was beating, but in that moment he didn’t particularly care. Malfoy the Platonic was a distant dream, making way for this new Malfoy the Experimental who did more than just suppress all his feelings for his best friend.

Albus relaxed against him and Scorpius gently stroked his hair, revelling in the feeling of the thick strands between his fingers. Albus’ eyelids fluttered closed and he made a satisfied little noise. That night, they fell asleep cuddled up together, very differently to how they had any other night. It may not have been the first night they’d shared a bed, but it was the first time there was absolutely no denying this wasn’t at all platonic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can’t believe we’re already on chapter 20! I’m already sad about this story ending :(  
> Thanks so much to everyone who commented on the last chapter, it makes my day to read them and I will always reply :) all the love to my betas Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra❤️  
> Say hello on tumblr:littlerose13writes if you want!  
> Until Friday :) have a great week, lovelies!


	21. Fairies and Unicorns

Sunday mornings were always the same in the Slytherin dormitory, and as Scorpius was the first to rise, he saw them unfold in the same way every single week. He would stir, blink a bit, reach for whichever book was on his bedside table and settle back against his pillow happily reading in the silence of the dorm, enjoying not having to be anywhere. 

After making a plan in his head of whatever homework he needed to prioritise that day, he’d pull himself out of bed and dress for breakfast. Sometimes Pucey was bumbling around the dorm, occasionally Higgs too; Albus and Cole both always remained fast asleep, dead to the world.

He’d eat breakfast, return to the dorm with toast for Albus, which he’d leave on his bedside table, before collecting whatever books he needed and heading to the library. That’s usually where Albus would meet him, a couple of hours later, where they would do homework together until Albus wore him down enough to convince him to leave and play Exploding Snap instead. 

So the Sunday morning routine was slightly thrown off by the fact that Scorpius woke up and reached for Albus instead of his book.

Albus wasn’t properly awake, but he snuggled back into Scorpius’ arms and murmured incoherently. Scorpius was suddenly faced with the urge to lean forward and kiss Albus on the forehead, but something stopped him acting on this impulse. Because a kiss on the forehead was undeniably  _ not _ platonic, but then again, was any of this platonic anymore? 

He suddenly couldn’t stand it, warm and cuddled up there in Albus’ bed with no idea what was going on between them anymore. Gently extracting himself from Albus’ arms, he left him there peacefully sleeping and tried to move about the dormitory as if it were any other Sunday morning. By the time he left the Slytherin common room for breakfast, Scorpius was firm in his resolve. 

He was going to say something today. 

Tea and toast accompanied Scorpius’ racing thoughts of how he was going to start this conversation with Albus, and all the ways it could go wrong. 

_ Albus, I was just wondering if it, you know, means anything that we’ve been sharing a bed. _

No, that was awful. 

_ Don’t take this the wrong way, because I like it, but we didn’t used to hold hands.  _

Even saying it to himself in his head made Scorpius cringe. 

There was no right way to approach this. He wanted to ask Albus if there was any meaning behind his arguably not-platonic behaviour, in such a way that if Albus did mean it, Scorpius could respond similarly, but if Albus meant nothing by it, Scorpius could brush it off. 

“So this is what breakfast on a Sunday looks like,” Albus fell down beside him with a grin, running a hand through his hair. “I quite like it.”

“Oh!” Scorpius squeaked, feeling himself turn red as if Albus could read his mind. “Good morning, I didn’t expect you to be awake.”

“You woke me up,” Albus shrugged like it was obvious. 

“Sorry, didn’t think anything could wake you up on a Sunday morning,” Scorpius tried to sound lighthearted and casual whilst also steeling himself to perhaps talk about  _ why _ he’d accidentally woken Albus up. 

“Don’t be sorry, it’s probably good for me!” Albus said cheerfully, pouring coffee. “So shall we work on that Defence essay today?” 

He was doing that thing again, acting so infuriatingly  _ ordinary  _ that Scorpius didn’t know how to respond. He wanted to bring this up, talk about it, even if he didn’t have the words yet, but finding the words was made all the more difficult by Albus’ casual attitude.

“Or would you prefer to start with Potions?” Albus probed when Scorpius didn’t answer. 

He cleared his throat. “Oh, yes, um, I was thinking Defence first and then Potions.” 

“Excellent,” Albus smiled and continued to chat away casually for the rest of their time at the breakfast table. 

Scorpius only half-concentrated on the way to the library as his mind turned over and over different ways to start this conversation with Albus. They set up at their usual table and he put all his effort into behaving as normally as Albus was but he couldn’t shake Thea’s words from his mind.

_ Listen to him, Scorpius, he’s trying to tell you. _

He stared into the distance, letting his thoughts wander and realising he was allowing them to reach a place he didn’t always let them go. Albus’ actions over the last week: holding his hand, the amount they’d shared a bed, all of it really, maybe that was the something he was trying to tell Scorpius? 

Was it considered platonic, perhaps just overly tactile, to walk hand in hand with your best friend down a school corridor? Or was there more to it than that?

Because Scorpius couldn’t ignore the fact that, since Christmas, Albus was different. Something inherent in him had changed, and Scorpius felt it every day. It was as if he’d come back after the holidays with a new lease of confidence, which Scorpius had put down to his trip away with his family. Albus’ relationship with his family, particularly his dad, always had the ability to completely change his mood. 

But it wasn’t just that. Along with his smattering of freckles and his annoyingly attractive new haircut, Albus seemed lighter and freer than he ever had before. He laughed more easily, barely sulked, didn’t complain as much; he was more like the Albus he was around his family, the Albus Hogwarts never got to see. 

Something had changed in Albus’ life and Scorpius just instinctively knew that it had something to do with whatever he was trying to tell Scorpius.

“My dad’s coming to Hogwarts in a couple of weekends’ time,” he started, hoping he could steer the conversation in the direction of home and family.

Albus looked up from his essay, interested. “Is he? Why?” 

“Something about alchemy and the new potions professor,” Scorpius shrugged, genuinely not knowing much more than that. “He’s coming a week Saturday, and he invited you to lunch with us… if you want.”

Albus grinned. “Yes please!” He paused. “Did you know he had breakfast with my parents last week? Mum was so excited, Dad said when he wrote to me.” Back to scratching away at his parchment. 

His dad went for breakfast with the Potters? The idea gave Scorpius a pleasant squirm in his stomach. He also noticed Albus’ wording, that it had been Harry who had written to him and not Ginny like usual. 

“I didn’t know that, but I’m glad,” Scorpius smiled. “That’s good for him. He seemed a bit happier too, at home.” 

Albus briefly looked up from his essay and smiled, going back to his sentence. 

Scorpius took a deep breath. “You know, Al, you seem happier too.”

That got his attention. His quill was down and his eyebrows raised. “What do you mean?” 

Scorpius tried to keep his wording careful, so close to what he wanted to say. “Since the holidays, you seem more cheerful than usual, more yourself. I’ve never seen you this happy at school before.” 

Albus started to fold his essay up. “I am happy, this has been my favourite year of school so far.”

He pressed on. “Me too. Is it being on the Quidditch team that’s made you so happy? Or the fact that we’ve made new friends?” 

Albus shrugged uncomfortably. “Hogwarts is starting to feel like a place where good things can happen,” he said quietly. “I like it here.”

“I can tell, you seem more relaxed.” Scorpius’ heart was thumping violently but he couldn’t give up now. “You’re more… relaxed with me.”

Albus ducked away from him to put his essay in his bag and Scorpius willed him to understand his hinted meaning. He emerged and slung his bag over his shoulder. “In a good way I hope?”

Scorpius wasn’t sure they were talking about the same thing. “Definitely in a good way! I… I like it, you, like this. Happier, more relaxed.”

Albus chuckled lightly. “Brilliant. Well, I’m off for my last run as a fifteen-year-old. I’ll see you later, Scor!” 

Scorpius waited until he was out of earshot and sighed heavily. That had gone atrociously. He was no closer to understanding where Albus’ head was at and no surer of what he was going to say when he tried again later.

“Cheer up, Scorpius. I have great news for you!” 

He was jerked from his thoughts by the bright voice of Lily Potter. “Hello, Lily.” 

“Hello indeed, look at this.” She reached into her bag and pulled out a jar, placing it on the table with a flourish and sitting down triumphantly. “For tomorrow.”

Scorpius stared at the jar, speechless. It contained around thirty tiny, glowing fairies, all flitting around each other and showering glitter everywhere.

“For tomorrow?” Scorpius echoed weakly, wondering why he always seemed to happen across Lily with stolen magical creatures. 

“Al’s birthday. I know you know Al’s birthday is tomorrow.” She snatched the jar up and hid it back in her bag, casting a furtive look around.

“Of course I know it’s Al’s birthday tomorrow. But, why the fairies?” 

Lily picked her feet up and crossed her legs on the library chair, in a way that would have been uncomfortable if Scorpius had tried it but Lily seemed to make work. 

“When we were growing up, every birthday Mum and Dad would get fairies like this to decorate. They get so excited when you open your presents, it’s great!” She beamed at Scorpius and tucked her long, red hair behind her ear. “I know Albus misses it, so I got you some to give to him when he wakes up tomorrow.” 

“Wow, Lily. Where did you get them?” 

“I’ve been catching them for the last few weeks so we’d have enough. Don’t worry, I’ve taken very good care of them.” She spoke very seriously, even though the fairies’ wellbeing hadn’t been on Scorpius’ mind at all. “They’ll fly back in the jar once he’s opened his presents, then I can release them.” 

“This is all very… nice,” Scorpius said lamely. 

“If you asked, he’d pretend he doesn’t want them, but trust me, he’s going to love them when he sees them tomorrow.” She sighed happily. 

“Are you sure you don’t want to give them to him? You won’t be there to see his reaction if you give them to me.” 

Lily raised her eyebrows. “No! I want you to give them to him, they’ll mean more coming from you anyway.”

“But, Lil, you went to all this effort to catch them, why are you giving them to me?” Scorpius protested. 

“Because I love my brother, and do you know what, Scorpius? I love you too.” She said this almost fiercely, looking scarily like Ginny for a second. “Albus is happier than I’ve ever seen him since he started Hogwarts, and I sort of feel like it’s got something to do with you, Scorpius.”

“Something to do with me? Are you sure?” Scorpius squeaked. 

“Very sure. You brought my brother back and I love you for it.” She pressed the jar into his hand under the table. “Open the jar tonight once Albus is asleep and they’ll settle themselves around his presents ready for when he wakes up. Oh, and give him this, please!”

She reached into her bag again and placed a wrapped present on top of the table. Scorpius was still holding the jar of fairies out of sight and he opened his mouth to say something.

“Bye, Scorp!” She hugged him briefly, kissed him on the cheek and disappeared almost as quickly as she’d arrived. 

Scorpius shook his head in disbelief, burying the jar of fairies in his school bag and straightening back up with another sigh. He wondered how Albus’ run was going and found himself instinctively looking out of the library window, but a small, running Albus was nowhere to be seen. Scorpius attempted to quiet his thoughts and tried to focus on his essay.

It was starting to get dark and Scorpius thought Albus must have finished running by now. Maybe it was time for a fresh attempt at conversation, even though the thought made his palms sweat and his heart race. He would just go and find him in the dormitory, and then say… well, he’d work that out on the way. 

The sound of running water greeted Scorpius as he entered the dorm and he guessed it was Albus showering. Knowing a just-showered Albus - his hair all wet and dripping and possibly in only a towel - really was not going to do his heart rate any good right now, Scorpius left the dormitory again. Instead, he chose an armchair close to the fire and tried to read through the Defence essay he’d written that day, telling himself that he was just waiting for Albus to be fully dressed and ready to talk.

He was going to do this, he  _ was.  _

“Is that your Potions essay?” Thea dropped down beside him. “I can’t find any sources which disagree with Kennerton’s moonstone theory. Have you found any?”

Scorpius shook his head. “No, this is Defence. I had an extension. But for Potions, you can use the rule of opposite potency equivalence to contrast with Kennerton. Albus explained it to me and it seems to work.” 

Thea smiled. “Interesting! I hadn’t thought of that.” She turned around and called across the common room. “Immy! Scorpius has solved all our problems.” 

Imogen finished her conversation and came skipping over, a grin on her face. “Is this about Potions or dress code?”

“Potions, listen.” 

Imogen joined them and they spent a companionable half an hour editing and completing their potions essays together. Cole appeared halfway through and desperately scribbled a few things down too, and eventually Albus appeared from the dormitory. 

Scorpius thought about how he’d been worried he wouldn’t be able to concentrate if Albus was all fresh out of the shower, but as he watched him walk towards them, he realised that was always going to be a problem. He just looked effortlessly adorable, in that sweet, Albus-y way, and his face absolutely lit up as everyone at their table greeted him enthusiastically. He was wearing his Christmas jumper, deep emerald with a little white A in the top corner, and it was just a little bit too big for him, the whole effect making him look cuddly and innocent.

“Thanks so much for the opposite potency rule idea, Albus,” Imogen said when he got close enough to hear. “Scorpius has just been telling us, you’ve saved all our essays.”

Albus shrugged, his ears going a bit pink. “Oh, I don’t even know if it’s right.” 

“Of course it’s right, you’re always right when it comes to Potions,” Thea said matter-of-factly smiling at him and moving up so there was a space for him so sit down.

Albus nervously played with the back of his hair as he sat down between Thea and Scorpius. He was about to ask Albus how his run had been, to try and have a somewhat normal interaction with him before he potentially ruined everything, but he was interrupted by Ava who had joined them shortly after Cole did.

“Back to the point then,” she said in a businesslike fashion, “Thea, what was your idea to protest the dress code?”

“Okay, hear me out on this because it’ll only work if we get it right.”

Scorpius saw Albus’ eyes widen slightly, as if this wasn’t the conversation he thought he’d be joining.  

“Spill,” Ava said excitedly. “I love a Thea idea.” 

“So, the point of our protest is that it’s not fair we can’t choose to wear trousers or skirts. They’re both uniform, but our choice is made for us just because we’re girls or boys.” 

Cole nudged Scorpius and chuckled. “Maybe we should be protesting the fact us boys can’t wear skirts.” 

Thea fixed him with a cool look. “Actually, that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

“Of course!” Imogen looked ecstatic. 

“I’m not following this,” Albus said uncertainly.

Thea sighed. “We pick a day, or an afternoon, when everyone is in class, and we swap uniforms. We wear trousers, you guys wear skirts. We’re still wearing full Hogwarts uniform, and it proves the point that it’s sexist to tell us what we have to wear like that.”

“Does it?” Albus looked nervous. “You want me to wear a skirt?” 

“Not just you three!” Thea sighed in exasperation as Scorpius exchanged sceptical looks with Albus and Cole. “We need this to be as big as possible, loads of people!”

“Alright,” Cole chuckled. “I’ll wear a skirt, you mad thing.” He affectionately ruffled Thea’s hair.

“What about other houses? Can Rose get the Gryffindors on board? If she can convince Polly to do it with us-” Imogen started. 

“I don’t think she and Polly are friends at the moment,” Ava supplied knowledgeably. 

“I also don’t think Polly Chapman is the queen bee you think she is, that’s no loss,” Thea said, sounding uncharacteristically bitter. “Rose’ll be up for it, she’ll gather the Gryffindors up. I’ll ask Freya about Hufflepuff, she was up for being involved.”

As the girls started to discuss who they knew in Ravenclaw to ask, Albus nudged Scorpius and cocked his head in Thea’s direction. “What do you think about all of this?” 

“I think it’s a good idea, I want to support them,” he said diplomatically. “How different is a skirt to dress robes anyway?” 

“I hate dress robes,” Albus laughed. 

“I’ll do it, it’ll be a laugh either way,” Cole put in. “And it’s a good point too.”

“What if James does it too?” Scorpius asked shrewdly, knowing that would be part of Albus’ worries. 

“Maybe I’d do it then,” Albus muttered. “I just don’t like drawing attention to myself.” 

“I do,” Cole said, laughing and clapping Albus on the back. “I’ll stand in front of you, alright?” 

Albus rolled his eyes and shook his head, catching Scorpius’ eye and grinning wickedly, which only served the purpose of reminding Scorpius he still hadn’t spoken to Albus about the handholding and the bedsharing, and the end of the day was getting ever closer. Maybe this was a good thing and he could use the fact they were in the same bed (because he knew they would be) to bring up the topic. 

They didn’t end up going to bed for hours, when an Exploding Snap game escalated into an intense boys vs girls tournament which the girls narrowly won. When they eventually got to the dormitory and put on pyjamas - and Cole went crawling sleepily into his own bed mumbling a goodnight - there was the smallest of awkward pauses.

“Come on, it’s my birthday tomorrow,” Albus broke the silence, tugging Scorpius by the hand until they were both somehow inside Scorpius’ hangings and on top of his bed. He pulled back the covers, crawled in and lowered them gently back down over the two of them in a way that was becoming normal.

Scorpius’ heart was beating fast, his pulse thumping in his ears, and he took a deep breath, willing himself not to sound shaky. “So, Albus, I’ve been meaning to ask you…”

“Ask me what?” Albus blinked up at him, then propped himself up on his elbow. He looked genuinely intrigued, as if he had no inkling what Scorpius might be about to say. 

Scorpius ploughed ahead, a new determination within him. “Well, it’s just,  _ this,  _ what we’re doing right now, we didn’t ever do this before and I was just thinking-” 

“Do you not want to?” Albus said shortly, frozen in the bed beside him. 

“No! I mean, er, yes! But-” 

“Glad we cleared that up.” Albus sighed and settled against him with his eyes closed. “I’m knackered, mate. See you in the morning.”

Cleared that up?  _ Cleared that up?  _

Scorpius couldn’t think of a single thing which had been less clear in his entire life. That was the huge conversation he’d been mentally preparing for all day? He fell back against the pillow and sighed, realising Albus had already fallen asleep.

As tomorrow was Albus’ sixteenth birthday, and he had the fairies from Lily, Scorpius had been planning to wait for him to fall asleep and creep away to set everything up. What he hadn’t planned for was the confusing yet thrilling feelings Albus’ words had given him. 

_ Do you not want to? _

That surely meant Albus wanted to, was choosing to sleep with Scorpius because he wanted to and not because of some other obligation. And the way they were sleeping wasn’t how best friends share a bed surely, he thought as he carefully extracted himself out from under Albus’ arm and watched him cuddle into himself where Scorpius was now absent. Maybe, just maybe, Albus returned his feelings. 

_ Best not to think about that too much,  _ Scorpius decided as he crossed the dorm to Albus’ own, empty bed. 

His bed was made neatly, seeing as he wasn’t sleeping in it- Scorpius suddenly wondered if the house elves who cleaned their dorm had noticed one of their beds had been untouched every night. On top of the smooth, green duvet, Scorpius arranged the carefully wrapped presents he’d had hidden in his trunk for ages. 

In the middle was the music box extension which adjusted to the mood of the listener, and the rest of Scorpius’ gifts contained Albus’ favourite sweets and chocolates. Another was the present from Lily and there was also space for the house elves to deliver Albus’ birthday presents from his family when they came by owl post.

From the small jar, he released the fairies. They fluttered up to the top of the four poster bed and clustered in the corners, casting a warm glow. One of the fairies gave Scorpius a thumbs up as she looked around at the bed. 

Satisfied with the set up, he crawled back into bed and Albus wrapped an arm around him in his sleep, mumbling something incoherent. Ever since the night of the Hufflepuff Quidditch game, they’d become even more tactile with each other when they were sharing a bed. Albus’ hand snaked up and rested at his head, lightly stroking his hair in a way Scorpius was starting to get used to.

* * *

 

For once, Albus woke up before Scorpius did so he sleepily opened his eyes to see Albus smiling down at him. 

“What are you doing?” he mumbled incoherently. 

“Sorry, did I wake you up? You looked so peaceful.”

“Albus, what time is it?”

“Time to wake up and open birthday presents?” Albus said hopefully and Scorpius pulled himself upright, grinning at Albus. 

“Happy birthday. Look on your bed.” 

Albus was uncharacteristically chirpy for such an early hour and also the fact he hadn’t had any coffee yet. He bounced out of bed and wrenched his hangings back in excitement. The clusters of fairies swarmed around him, leaving him looking much more glittery than usual. He laughed and batted them away.

“You got fairies?” he asked in astonishment. “I haven’t had fairies on my birthday since I turned eleven. Thanks, Scor!”

Scorpius shrugged and grinned modestly. “It was Lily.” 

He opened the present from his parents first, which turned out to be his very own magical camera. He turned it over in both hands, staring at it in awe. “How cool is this?” he said to Scorpius eagerly. “I’ve always wanted to experiment with photo-developing potions too. You know, the ones which make them move.” 

Lily’s present was a smart wooden box for organising small quantities of potion ingredients. It had the initials A.S.P carved into the top and Scorpius could tell Albus absolutely adored it. Less thrilling was the small package inside the box, labelled  _ Lily’s Special Potions Kit  _ and containing various bits of grass and leaves with a few random flower petals.

“Is this part a joke?” Albus wondered aloud, holding up a bundle of twigs labelled  _ spine of lionfish _ . 

“I think that’s supposed to demonstrate where you put the ingredients?” Scorpius was uncertain. “Anyway, open mine now!” 

Albus loved the extension for his music box and he attached it straight away. 

“The man in the shop said it will work better the more it gets to know you,” Scorpius explained as a strange and not at all musical sound came playing out loud. 

“What is  _ that _ ?” The sound of the music box had woken up Cole and he grinned over at them. “Happy birthday, Al. Have that.” 

Albus caught the extra large chocolate frog Cole threw over to him. “Thanks, Cole.”

At breakfast, James came barrelling over and wrestled Albus into a rather violent hug. His hair was a complete mess by the time James allowed him to surface, his choruses of  _ happy birthday, baby brother _ finally subsiding. He handed Albus two wrapped presents and sat down beside him expectantly. 

“Are these real? Wow, James!” Albus held up a pair of Keeper gloves and Scorpius’ heart sank at his obvious joy at receiving them, when Scorpius had bought Albus personalised Keeper gloves for Christmas just two weeks ago. 

“I thought they’d bring you luck in the Ravenclaw game.”

“Come off it, James. I’m not going to  _ use  _ them. I have the pair Scorpius got me for good luck. No, these are to be admired. I can’t believe these are really a pair of Gonçalo Flores’ Keeper gloves.” 

James beamed. “They were fun to track down, believe me. Now open the other one.”

Albus ripped open the smaller, flatter package and inside found a small pile of parchment containing James’ own handwriting. Albus read the top one and laughed to himself. “ _ This voucher entitles Mr Albus Potter to one use of the Invisibility Cloak.  _ Thanks, James.”

Scorpius watched as Albus pulled his brother into a much more civilised hug.

“Happy birthday, Al.” Thea sat down opposite them and greeted the hugging Potters. 

“Thanks, you too,” Albus responded as he let go of James. Then a look of exasperated realisation crossed his face and he slapped his palm to his head. “No, not what I meant.”

Thea laughed and handed him a green envelope. Albus eased it open and laughed loudly at the card inside before turning it around to show Scorpius. 

It was multi coloured and pastel with blinding glittery patches all over on top of which a unicorn frolicked and munched on a daisy. In a childish font were the words  _ Birthday girl, 6 today! _ but Thea had inked a big number one in front of the six. 

“Excellent! Why didn’t I think of that?” James high-fived Thea and roared with laughter. 

“It has a badge too!” Thea pointed out happily.

Albus laughed and detached the badge, which was also glittery and declared the words  _ birthday princess _ flashing through every colour of the rainbow. “I’ll wear it all day.” 

Scorpius noticed James was eyeing Albus with a fond smile on his face and he remembered what Lily had said the day before about Albus seeming happier than he ever had before. He realised quickly he was staring at Albus and he stopped himself before he started sighing or something equally embarrassing. 

Thea caught his eye and grinned. “Scorpius, you know I said I needed to switch rounds this week? Well I’ve asked Freya Everfall to swap with me and she said she can. You don’t mind doing rounds with her do you?”

Scorpius shook his head. “No problem.”

James had gone back to the Gryffindor table and Albus was still chuckling at the card. “Seriously great birthday so far. Do you know what the best part was?”

“What?” 

Albus leant across to whisper in Scorpius’ ear. “Waking up with you.”

* * *

 

With Albus’ Quidditch training and Scorpius’ Prefect duties, it was hard to find a time or opportunity to talk to Albus about things. Scorpius still wasn’t really sure what he might say, but he knew he wanted to say  _ something _ . It was getting so easy to just cuddle up with Albus and fall asleep with their arms around each other; it was becoming almost the norm to hold one another’s hand when nobody was around. 

Three days after his birthday, when they both had a free night, Scorpius was thwarted again when Albus suggested they have a go at patronus lessons. Albus was still doubtful he’d be any good as a teacher, but Scorpius was keen to just have a go, even if he didn’t have high hopes for himself. 

They planned to use the Room of Requirement, but after they each tried twice to get it to open, they had to admit defeat.

“Are we doing something wrong?” Albus sank to the floor and leaned against the wall.

“No, we’re doing exactly what Thea said. Someone must be using it.” Scorpius sighed and joined him on the floor. “Shame. I was really looking forward to it.”

“We can still do it! Let’s think, where else can we go where we won’t be interrupted?” 

They both thought for a second before an idea came to Scorpius. “Prefect bathroom? Only a few people know the password.”

“What if a prefect tries to come in and then they see us come out and think we were having a bath together?” Albus said this light-heartedly but, because of his new haircut, Scorpius could see that his ears had turned red. 

“They wouldn’t think that, would they?” He felt himself blush too.

“They might,” Albus reasoned. 

“Well, we  _ wouldn’t  _ be having a bath together.” 

Scorpius wondered if Albus was imagining a scene in his head too where they did bathe together. He thought he would quite like that. 

“No, just some dubiously legal patronus lessons.” 

“There’s nothing dubious about it.” Scorpius got up from the floor. “It’s against several school rules and has the potential to land us in detention if we get caught.”

“Yet here we are.” Albus took Scorpius’ offered hand and pulled himself up. Scorpius’ hand tingled at the touch and felt a bit empty when Albus let go again on his feet. “Which way to the prefect bathroom?” 

On the way to the bathroom, Scorpius told Albus about the background reading he’d done in preparation to try a patronus for the first time. Albus smiled fondly as Scorpius rambled on and on, and he wondered how he’d gotten so lucky to have someone who would put up with his geekiness. 

“I love it when you go into full Geek Mode.” Albus gently took his hand, stroking his thumb over the back of Scorpius’ hand. 

“Bubbles,” Scorpius breathed and cleared his throat when Albus looked confused. “The password. Bubbles.”

The bathroom was mercifully unoccupied and Albus’ jaw dropped at the sight of the swimming pool-sized bathtub. 

“This is incredible!” He sat on the edge of the bath, his legs dangling over the side. “Maybe we really should have a bath while we’re here.” 

“You can stay here after we’re finished if you want.” Scorpius chuckled.

“Nah, it wouldn’t be as fun without you,” Albus said happily, swinging his legs back and forth. 

Scorpius wasn’t sure if Albus’ words were supposed to sound as suggestive as they did; either way, he didn’t know how to respond. 

“Show me your raven again.” He joined Albus perched on the side of the tub. 

“Okay.” Albus went very still and quiet then cleared his throat. “ _ Expecto patronum!” _

The silvery blue bird soared round the smooth surface of the bathtub, almost transparent on the white background. Now he wasn’t in the midst of a panic attack, Scorpius could fully appreciate how beautiful the raven was, and how much skill it must have taken to produce it. 

“You’re amazing, you know that,” Scorpius breathed and Albus shook his head.

“It’s not like I’ve ever used one to fight off a dementor or anything. I bet I wouldn’t be able to do it then, I’d forget all my happy memories.”

Scorpius shuddered at the memory of the dementors and the way they sucked every last bit of hope from him. “I hope you never have to experience dementors, Albus. Finding a happy memory is not easy when they’re around.” 

“That’s the part that took me the longest, choosing the right memory. Dad said it took him a while to pinpoint which memories filled him with enough joy to cast a patronus when he first learnt. I had to give it a go with loads before it even started to work for me. The one that worked when I first managed it was the night we got home from Godric’s Hollow. Me and Dad, we just stayed up for hours talking and... I knew he loved me that night.” 

“Of course he loves you.” Scorpius placed his hand on Albus’ thigh. 

“I know that  _ now _ . But that night was when it really became clear to me.”

“Is that the memory you used last week to make my attack go away?”

Albus stared at him for a second. “No, it was a different memory.” He put his wand away. “Why don’t you give it a try?”

Scorpius hesitantly removed his wand and held it uncertainly. His happiest memory. Instantly, he thought of the feeling of being a small child and being hugged by both his parents at the same time. Although it was bittersweet to know he would never feel that again, he could still remember how happy and comforted it made him feel.

“Got your memory? Okay, wand movement is a straight jab forwards, incantation is  _ expecto patronum _ which I’m sure you knew, and you shouldn’t expect to even come close the first few times. That’s what my dad said to me.” 

Scorpius clambered up out of the bath, feeling like he ought to stand up for this. He let the memory fill him and cried the incantation, jabbing his wand forwards. A short burst of white light shot from the end of his wand and Albus jumped up in awe.

“Wow, Scorpius! Something happened. Nothing at all happened my first four attempts.” The same thing happened twice more and each time, Albus watched and marvelled over how great Scorpius was, which made him feel all warm inside. “I think maybe you need to be a bit sharper with your wand. Let me show you.”

Albus came and stood behind him, placing his hand over Scorpius’ own. His lips were inches from Scorpius’ neck and he could feel him breathing. He allowed the memory of seeing Albus again in the lake that day, the pure relief and joy at getting his best friend back, to fill him before he tried again.

“ _ Expecto patronum!” _ This time, the light was silver and had more substance to it than before. It was more than just white light, it felt more magical somehow. Albus didn’t let go of his hand, guiding Scorpius’ movement. 

When the light dimmed, they stayed in close contact, Albus’ arm wrapped around Scorpius’ back and connecting with his wand hand. Scorpius turned in his arms, his gaze meeting Albus’. “Like that?”

“Exactly like that,” Albus whispered. Their faces were inches apart, their bodies still touching. Albus’ expression was tender and Scorpius couldn’t help glancing down at his full, pink lips. Nobody spoke, nobody moved, they just stared at each other, something palpable and undefinable in the air. 

“Now try again by yourself,” Albus said suddenly, stepping away, his voice unusually loud in the small space between them. Scorpius turned away and held his wand ready, noticing the absence of Albus right behind him. 

His patronus went back to the white light after that. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I continue to be blown away by the love this story receives, I’m so grateful!  
> So much love to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for the help and support :)   
> My tumblr is littlerose13writes if you want to come and yell at me asking why they haven’t kissed yet!  
> Until Monday, have a lovely weekend friends❤️


	22. Reckless Adventures

“Remind me again why I agreed to this plan?”

“We’re doing this for Victoire, remember.”

Scorpius nodded and finished tying his shoe.

“Plus, you love going on adventures with me,” Albus said cheekily over his shoulder. “Come and get under the cloak.”

They’d left the dorm as if they were in for a long night of homework in the library, but had taken a diversion to the prefects’ bathroom again, where Albus had brought the borrowed invisibility cloak. 

“Did you use one of your birthday present vouchers?”

“Yep, but he would have let me borrow it anyway.” Albus tugged it over both of their shoulders so only their heads were visible. “He’s over the moon that we’re doing this. He doesn’t do stuff like this now he’s Head Boy and he misses it like crazy, said I could borrow the cloak because he’s so proud his  _ little brother’s following in his footsteps.”  _

He rolled his eyes in that way he often did when he was exasperated and pulled the cloak over them fully. The invisibility cloak covered them both but only if they huddled close together.

“Any second now,” Albus muttered, staring at Scorpius’ watch. Scorpius watched him from his close vantage point; he could count every one of Albus’ light freckles, still smattered across his cheekbones from his trip away at Christmas. “Any second.”

“Well, I suppose I can use the prefects’ bathroom,” the voice of James Potter said loudly from just outside the door. He told the door the password and it swung open, he crossed the threshold and made a big show of having a coughing fit, leaving the door open behind him for Albus and Scorpius to sneak out, invisible. 

“Thanks,” Albus hissed as they passed his brother.

“Good luck, Baby Boy,” James whispered back and swung the door shut behind them. 

They walked carefully and slowly along the edge of the corridors, thankfully not running into anyone who was paying enough attention to look for two invisible fifth years. Scorpius was focusing very hard on not letting his hand brush against Albus’ too much; his best friend’s hand seemed to always be right there.

They approached the one-eyed, humpback witch statue James had told them about and Albus uncertainly drew his wand. He tapped the hump and whispered  _ “dissendium,” _ causing it to roll open like James had said it would. With a gleeful look in Scorpius’ direction, he lifted the cloak up and handed it to Scorpius to hold up while he wriggled through the hole. When he was in, Scorpius followed, covered in the cloak.

In the safe darkness of the passageway, they didn’t need the cloak, so Albus bundled it up and stuffed it into his backpack. He looked like an excited toddler who’d just been told they were having ice cream. 

“This is so cool!” he said, running ahead. 

“We’ve snuck out of school and now we’re in a secret passageway and this still isn’t the most reckless thing we’ve done,” Scorpius sang. 

“Come on!” Albus looked gleeful and he grabbed onto Scorpius’ hand, pulling him along in excitement. 

He didn’t let go of his hand until they climbed into Honeydukes basement and put the invisibility cloak back on. 

Once they were safely out on the street, Albus pulled him into an alcove and ripped the cloak off. They crept out onto the street and Scorpius straightened his robes while Albus flattened his hair. It was early evening on a Friday and Hogsmeade was almost deserted; nobody noticed them at all. 

It was only a short walk up the high street to where Victoire and Teddy lived. Teddy’s shop was closed so Albus knocked on the red door to the side of the closed shop front and it opened, as if it had been expecting them. When the door was shut, they climbed a flight of stairs. 

“In the kitchen!” Teddy’s voice yelled when they got close enough to hear. 

Albus dumped his backpack on the sofa and led Scorpius through the brightly decorated flat, full of interesting-looking, foreign magical objects. Scorpius recognised an Indian Rememberall. 

“Hi, boys,” Teddy greeted them from a stool at the breakfast bar and then he suddenly winced.

The reason for his apparent pain came from Victoire, who was standing over his outstretched hand with a small potion vial in one hand and her wand in another. She was applying the potion to what Scorpius could now see was a nasty cut on Teddy’s hand, between his thumb and forefinger.

“Hello,” Victoire smiled then went back to dabbing the smoking liquid onto Teddy’s wound. It must have contained Essence of Dittany but Scorpius didn’t recognise the potion itself. 

“Er, what happened?” Albus asked, taking his cloak off and holding his hand out for Scorpius’. “You know you’re supposed to cut people’s hair with those scissors, right? Not your own thumb.” 

“He was trying to spin and catch them with one hand,” Victoire added with a faint smile. 

“I swear I can do it one-handed!” Teddy protested. 

“Of course you can, dear.” Victoire patted Teddy on the top of his pale-blue hair. 

“You managed to sneak out okay then?”

“No, Ted, we got caught by McGonagall.” Albus pulled out one of the bar stools and climbed onto it. 

Teddy experimentally flexed his fingers and winced again. “I remember when you were eight and you didn’t get sarcasm, Al. Can you imagine such a thing, Scorpius?” 

Scorpius laughed, taking Victoire’s offered bar stool and hoisting himself up onto it. 

Teddy got up and ruffled Albus’ hair as he passed. “Hair looks good.”

“Thanks,” Albus said skeptically, watching him with slightly narrowed eyes. 

“You two staying for dinner?” he asked casually, setting a pan on the stove and tapping it with his wand.

“Yes please,” Albus replied on both of their behalves.

“Thanks,” said Scorpius. 

“So, how have you both been?” Victoire asked, leaning against the breakfast bar and handing them each a pumpkin juice she seemed to produce from nowhere. “How was your birthday, Al?”

Albus smiled over at Scorpius for a second. “It was really good. Thanks for the t-shirt.”

“You’re welcome,” she replied. “Scorpius, how are you?”

“I’m okay. How’s your dissertation going?”

Victoire pulled a face. “It’s taking over my life. I’ve got twelve thousand words written.”

“Only eight to go,” Teddy said from behind her, a spatula in one hand. 

They didn’t get round to talking about Albus’ patronus until they’d finished eating the pasta Teddy cooked. Instead, Albus gave them a breakdown of Slytherin’s chances in the house Quidditch league. Despite their recent loss to Hufflepuff, they were still in with a chance if the next game with Ravenclaw went well. 

“Tell me about your patronus, Al,” Victoire started the conversation; her wand was set up with a clever spell to record what they were saying so she could play it back later.

Albus cleared his throat and looked to Scorpius, who nodded. “Okay, well I practised it loads at home, so I knew I’d be able to do it, and I’ve got it nearly every time now! It’s a raven.” He looked so adorably proud of himself.

“Good job, Al,” Teddy said, managing not to sound at all patronising. 

Albus beamed and carried on. “So me and Scorpius were in an empty classroom and he was all shaky and barely registering I was there, I don’t think. It was… it was a bad one.” 

At this, Albus looked at him for the first time since he’d started speaking, his expression gentle and loving. He lifted his hand, as if he were considering taking hold of Scorpius in some way, but then he seemed to lose his nerve and awkwardly played with his fringe instead. 

“I’m sorry, Scorpius,” Victoire said gently. “What happened next?”

“Albus is right,” Scorpius joined in. “I felt like I wasn’t really there, my heart was beating so fast and I was scared. I didn’t notice him cast the patronus, just suddenly I felt so much better.”

“It was sudden? Instantly after the patronus?”

Scorpius glanced to Albus again. “It was crazy how fast it worked! I was in my usual state, I felt like I couldn’t breathe properly and that’s normally when Albus starts the reciting thing. But instead, he cast a patronus and instantly I could breathe, I didn’t feel anxious, my heart rate went down. It was miraculous.”

“Fascinating, that fits my theory! The positive energy used to create a patronus works to combat the trauma and fear created by the panic attack. Tell me, was there anything different about the patronus itself?”

Albus nodded enthusiastically. “It was different to the ones I cast at home. It felt different somehow, it’s hard to explain.” 

Victoire beamed and jotted something down. “I was hoping you’d say that! I think there’s a certain type of patronus one can only produce in response to an attack.”

“So you don’t think I could cast a patronus right now?” asked Albus, sounding a bit offended.

“I’m sure you could, Al. But it would just be an ordinary patronus, for battling a dementor or sending a message.”

Albus stood up and looked to Teddy for permission. “Can I try?” 

“Why not? You’ve already snuck out of school, why not break the law too?”

“I’m officially the worst prefect ever,” Scorpius moaned.

Teddy patted him on the shoulder. “Mate, I was a prefect and Head Boy. Bad influence, this one.” He jerked his thumb in Albus’ direction. “Go ahead, Al.”

Albus lit up and he pulled his wand out, looking nervously over at Scorpius and then at Teddy, who gave him a reassuring nod. He paused for a second in thought then “ _ Expecto patronum!” _ Albus cried with a wand flourish. His silvery-blue raven shot from his wand and soared around the room, but it circled Albus’ head twice then faded into vapour.

“Nice, Al.” Teddy clapped Albus on the shoulder proudly and Albus beamed. 

“That wasn’t it though, was it, Scor?” 

“That wasn’t like the one you did. It seemed more, sort of, substantial than that. It landed on my shoulder and let me stroke it.” 

“I’ve never heard of a patronus like that. Albus, can I ask, what memory did you use to cast the patronus?” 

“Um, I don’t want to say,” he mumbled. 

“Why don’t you try again?” said Teddy quickly, jumping up and looking expectant. 

“Okay,” Albus replied, without hesitation.

”I need to transcribe some of this,” Victoire said hurriedly, disappearing into another room.

Albus cast his patronus again and his raven did exactly the same thing as before. 

“Scorpius, do you want to have a go too?” 

Scorpius felt himself blush. “Oh, no, I can barely do it,” he muttered.

“You kind of can!” Albus insisted. 

“No, no, it’s just a load of silver mist,” Scorpius shook his head violently. 

“I still say it had wings, that last one.” Albus sat back down and put his wand away. “What time does Honeydukes close?” 

“Why, you hungry?” Teddy grinned. 

“No, that’s our way back to school,” Albus replied and Teddy looked at the clock on the wall.

“About ten minutes ago,” he replied casually.

“ _ What? _ ” Scorpius exclaimed, not able to help himself from jumping up. 

“How are we going to get back?” Albus asked in horror. 

Teddy shrugged. “I don’t know how James used to do it. You can stay here if you want? Head back in the morning when Honeydukes is open? You don’t have school.”

Albus looked at Scorpius as if to say  _ sounds good to me _ . “I don’t start Quidditch until eleven.” 

“Perfect, I’ll just tell Vic.” 

He left them alone and Scorpius couldn’t help wringing his hands together. “What if someone notices we’re gone? We could get into  _ so _ much trouble.”

Albus tried to shrug casually but he looked a bit worried. “Relax, I’m sure nobody will even miss us.”

“Our roommates-“

“Haven’t even noticed that we’ve been…” Albus interrupted him but then tailed off uncomfortably. “They won’t say anything.” 

Victoire was inspired by their conversation and stayed in her room writing for another hour; Scorpius could occasionally hear a recording of his own voice through the door. Teddy played Exploding Snap with them and told Scorpius a couple of funny stories about when Albus was little. 

“Can I tell him about your  _ baby Lily sister? _ ” Teddy grinned.

“Fine.” Albus rolled his eyes. 

Teddy looked triumphant. “So, the Potters had this toy baby doll which they bought for James and Al when they found out Lily was on the way. I think the idea was to get them both used to having a baby around.”

“Can I just clarify, I was barely two years old when all of this was going on,” Albus put in. 

“Anyway, James wasn’t that interested in it, but Al here  _ loved  _ it. He took his role as big brother to the doll very seriously. It wasn’t just a toy, oh no - he had Gryffindor by this point and that was his favourite toy. He used to call the doll  _ Baby Lily Sister _ .”

“That’s adorable.” Scorpius smiled over at Albus who showed him a reluctant grin. 

“ _ Baby Lily Sister _ needed a lot of naps. Several times a day I’d be playing with James and Al would come up to us and shush us and point to wherever he’d lay the doll down with a blanket over it until we were quieter. After Lily was born, he used to copy everything Ginny did.”

“Everything? Even-“

Teddy nodded and Albus buried his face in his hands. “Yep, even nursing.”

“Teddy!” Albus complained.

“What? You said I could tell him!” Teddy ruffled his hair again and Albus tried to look offended. “You were a cute kid, Al. What happened?” 

He threw his arms up to cover his face as Albus fired a cushion at his head (and with his well-trained Keeper’s aim, it met its mark perfectly). Albus shook his head and sighed at Scorpius.

“I can still be cute, right, Scor?”

Scorpius laughed nervously and didn’t miss the smirk Teddy sent in his direction. He looked mischievous as he glanced down at his watch. 

“Well, I open at nine tomorrow. Best be turning in.” Teddy smiled and stood up with his wand in his hand. He waved it and transfigured the sofa into a bed complete with pillows. 

Just one bed.

“Spare toothbrushes in the bathroom, goodnight.” And with that, he left. 

There was a long silence, in which neither Scorpius nor Albus could look at each other, both of them staring at the bed in shocked horror. 

“I’m… going to kill him,” Albus whispered from beside him. 

“I’m not a violent person, but me too,” Scorpius mumbled back. 

“I’ll just sleep on the floor,” Albus said glumly, picking one of the pillows up and hugging it to his chest. “If you want me to.”

Scorpius allowed a small smile to creep across his face. “No.” 

Albus smirked back. “No?” 

“No floor,” Scorpius smiled more widely. 

Albus threw the pillow back down onto the bed and pulled Scorpius by the hand until they both fell into place side by side.

“Albus?” Scorpius said bravely after they’d got into bed and flicked the lights off. “You’re still cute.”

* * *

Creeping back to school on Saturday morning was worryingly easy, and made Scorpius wonder if they should be concerned that nobody had noticed they were gone all night. Albus was all sleepy and leant against Scorpius the whole walk back, grumbling that Scorpius wouldn’t let him buy a coffee in Hogsmeade (“We’re not supposed to be here, Albus!”) until they were back at school. He took a nap before Quidditch training and was much more cheerful for the rest of the weekend, gently taking Scorpius’ hand again in bed on Sunday night.

After what was now two weeks of sleeping in the same bed as his best friend, Scorpius had learnt a few things he hadn’t previously known about Albus. In the process, he thought Albus had probably learnt some new things about him too and he wondered if they would ever be in a place where they could talk about it with each other.

The first thing Scorpius learnt about Albus was that he moved around in bed a  _ lot _ to fall asleep, but once he was out, he barely moved all night. He’d roll over from side to side before inevitably remembering he could only fall asleep on his back, and passing out facing up towards the ceiling. 

Scorpius preferred to sleep on his side, but no matter what position they fell asleep in, they nearly always woke up in the same one: Albus with his head resting on Scorpius’ bare chest (neither of them wore t-shirts to bed anymore) like it was his own personal pillow and his arms round Scorpius’ middle, Scorpius’ own arm around Albus’ shoulders. He assumed this was a height difference thing and it was just more comfortable to share the bed that way. 

Albus always drifted off first and Scorpius always woke up first, so there were several moments where he could just gaze lovingly at his best friend, in this not-at-all-platonic situation. Albus would do this really cute smile while he was sleeping, where he’d wrinkle his nose up and sigh quietly. Scorpius liked to hope Albus was having really nice dreams. 

Another thing Albus often did as he was falling asleep was unconsciously seek out Scorpius’ hair with one hand and stroke it like a comfort blanket. Scorpius didn’t think he was fully aware he was doing it, because his eyes were always closed by this point, but he found it very soothing and it often sent him to sleep too. The reason for this became clear when he noticed this only happened when they slept in Scorpius’ bed. When they slept in Albus’ bed, he didn’t stroke Scorpius’ hair and instead, his hand would snake under his pillow to where Scorpius knew he kept his childhood stuffed dragon, named Gryffindor. It was heart-meltingly adorable.

If Cole, Higgs or Pucey had noticed that Scorpius and Albus were sleeping in each other’s beds every night, they weren’t saying anything to either of them (other than that vague  _ we don’t mind you know  _ comment after the Quidditch match which Scorpius was choosing to ignore). Scorpius ran into a bit of an awkward moment when Cole caught up with him on the way to breakfast on Monday morning. 

“Hey, Blondie, sorry I left my cloak on your bed yesterday. I was in a huge rush getting to detention on time and I just threw it down in the nearest place.”

Scorpius froze and thought carefully about how to respond. He hadn’t even noticed that Cole’s cloak had been on his bed because he hadn’t gone anywhere near his own bed last night, instead curling up with Albus like he was now used to doing. 

“Oh, don’t worry about it,” he said breezily, and he noticed Albus avoiding his gaze. 

“Do you know where it is now though? I couldn’t see it anywhere in the dorm this morning.”

Scorpius felt his cheeks grow warm. The honest answer was that Cole’s cloak was exactly where he’d left it on Scorpius’ bed, but giving that answer would either raise suspicion as to where Scorpius slept last night, or make Cole think that he’d slept in bed with his cloak. Neither outcome was particularly desirable. 

“Oh I saw it,” said Albus suddenly. “I’ll get it for you, I have to collect my Charms book anyway.”

Scorpius knew this was a lie and Albus had his Charms book right there in his bag.

“Thanks, Al.” Cole smiled.

Albus caught Scorpius’ eye and winked; Scorpius blushed even more and thought about that wink for the rest of the day.

* * *

 

It was later that evening and Scorpius found it strange that he wouldn’t be doing rounds with Thea that night as normal. What if he came across someone snogging again? It wouldn’t be half as funny without Thea, plus Freya might expect him to say something and stop them.

When he got to the Entrance Hall, Freya was nowhere to be seen and Scorpius stood around awkwardly, waiting for her to appear. He crossed his feet and uncrossed them, he folded his arms, he played with the back of his hair; Scorpius had never found standing still very easy. 

“Ready to go?” an unexpected voice came from behind him and he whipped round, suddenly feeling a strong sense of deja vu.

It wasn’t Freya at all; it was Rose. 

“Oh! Um, hi, Rose.” She was smiling quite nicely as he faltered and stuttered. “I thought I was doing rounds with Freya?”

“Sorry to disappoint,” Rose grinned. “She had to switch with me, some sort of Quidditch emergency. Sorry, I assumed she’d told you.” 

“No she didn’t.”

“That’s okay though, isn’t it? You don’t mind doing rounds with me?” She looked a bit apprehensive. 

“No!” Scorpius said far too quickly. “Let’s… let’s go.”

They started the familiar loop in silence and Scorpius didn’t really know what to say. Just when he was about to start a vague conversation about Quidditch, Rose broke the silence. 

“Sorry again about the date thing,” she said in a small voice. 

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” Scorpius replied, wishing he’d got there first with his non-committal Quidditch commentary. 

“I shouldn’t have done that,” she said seriously. 

“You’re still not going to tell me what was really going on?” Scorpius questioned, feeling all kinds of confused by what was now her second apology. 

“Nope, sorry.”

Her casual tone annoyed him for some reason. 

“Do you know, Rose, what would you have done if I’d really liked you and wanted another date?” He realised it was possibly a bit hypocritical of him to reprimand Rose for agreeing to a date she didn’t really want when he was the one who’d  _ asked _ her on a date he didn’t really want either. It turned out neither of them had really wanted to be there. 

Rose snorted with laughter. “Oh Scorpius, I  _ knew  _ you didn’t like me that much.” 

Scorpius considered her words, and realised he’d felt that about her. He knew she didn’t want to be there anymore than he did, but she can’t have known that, can she?

“You were confident enough that you felt safe to use me?” 

Because Scorpius had to admit to himself, he had known all along that Rose didn’t want to be on a date with him  _ that  _ badly. The dynamic had always been Scorpius pining after Rose and her snubbing him at every opportunity, which had worked out perfectly for him and his confusing, secret feelings for Albus. It really did explain a lot to find out Rose had other motives when she’d agreed to their date. 

“Yes. Not that that makes using you okay.” 

“We went to Hogsmeade because you needed a date for whatever reason and you knew I’d be willing.”

She looked ashamed. “Okay, but didn’t you use me a bit too?” 

Scorpius hesitated, not sure how to continue. “That’s not…”

“Don’t,” Rose interrupted him. “Ignore that, I didn’t mean that. I used you and I’m sorry.” 

“I knew there was more to it,” Scorpius admitted. “You’re best friends with Polly Chapman.” 

His mind flicked back to only the other day in Potions when she’d continued to go on and on about how Scorpius would obviously be good at brewing the Draught of the Living Dead with his ‘Death Eater roots’ and not one person had laughed. 

Rose stared at him as if he were slightly mad and he wondered what he’d said wrong. 

“I don't… I wouldn't really class Polly Chapman as a friend.” 

“Neither would I.” Scorpius snorted.

“No. She's… she  _ was  _ my friend. But this year in particular, with you and the whole rumour thing, now everyone  _ knows  _ it wasn't true after everything reported in the Prophet. She can't let it go, and it made me realise that she's just not a nice person.

“I don’t understand why she insists on picking on you. You’re a good person, Scorpius. I’m glad Albus has someone like you.” 

“Um, thankyou,” he mumbled, but she seemed on the verge of a monologue and her pace had increased. 

“Albus and me, we were best friends growing up. He went to school, and I didn't get to go because Mum wanted to teach me at home, and I was  _ so  _ jealous. He used to come round in his school uniform when we were six, and talk about his teacher and his classroom and all the friends he had in his class. But then he'd reassure me that none of them were his  _ best  _ friend, because that was me.

“I thought I knew how Hogwarts would go for us. We'd both be in Gryffindor together, and we'd still be best friends, and we'd be just like our parents were at school. Then in the summer before we left for Hogwarts, it all started to go wrong. James wouldn't stop teasing him about being a first year and how difficult the lessons were and how the older students would probably all pick on him, and I could see it really got to him. Nothing I said made the slightest bit of difference because I wasn't James.”

“They're brothers, he looks up to him.”

They turned a corner and Rose shook her head. “Not anymore he doesn't, not like he used to. Before you met him, Albus adored James, he wanted to be exactly like him growing up. He wanted to dress like him, he wanted his hair to look like James’ did, he wanted to like and dislike the same foods as James, he wanted to be good at everything James was good at.”

He pulled back a tapestry which lead to a not-so-secret alcove only first years were stupid enough to hide behind. “But they're quite different, James and Albus.”

Rose held her hands out in emphasis. “Exactly. Everyone said it and imagine how that made Albus feel. To him, James was everything that was worth being, so every time anyone pointed out something that was different between the two of them, Albus took that to mean he wasn't as good as his brother.” 

“But that's just not true!” Scorpius was incensed on Albus’ behalf; one of his least favourite things was Albus ever thinking he wasn’t good enough. 

“Of course it's not, but Albus couldn’t see that.” She took the first step on a staircase which had a trick step halfway up. “I can't pretend to understand it, me and Hugo have always been very different. I don't know what it's like to have an older sibling to look up to.” 

“I don't know what it's like to have a sibling at all.”

Scorpius reached the trick step first and skipped up over it to the next one. 

Rose skipped the step too, finding her balance again on the other side. “Back to my point, we drifted apart that summer, me and Albus. That first day on the train, we weren't best friends anymore and he didn't want to go along with my plan. And that's when we met you.”

Scorpius grinned. “I remember. You kept hitting Albus subtly to try and make him leave and he didn't get it at all and asked you to stop hitting him.” 

Rose laughed. “He's not got much better at tact.” 

“You didn't think he should make friends with Voldemort’s son.”

Rose stopped laughing. 

“That wasn't even it, Scorpius. Okay, it was a bit, I was eleven and not great at thinking for myself. But more than that, you two hit it off straight away and I knew, if Albus made friends with you, that would be it for me. I wouldn't ever get him back as my best friend like he used to be.” 

“Sorry.”

“Don't be. It’s not like I even tried to keep his friendship. I was too obsessed with the idea of being perfect and funny and popular like my parents, and it was easier to ignore Albus. I knew he had you so he wasn't completely miserable, but that didn’t make it okay. I was an awful friend.” 

She looked genuinely sorry, and Scorpius fully appreciated for the first time that she was Albus’ cousin, and that they’d grown up together, and there had been a time when she’d known him better than anyone, just like Scorpius did now.

“Your friends were hateful to him. Why did you never try and stop them?”

“Because I was scared. They were my only friends and I wanted to impress them. I've realised now that choosing your friends based on which house they're in, or how popular they are, isn't the key to being happy.” 

Scorpius appraised her in confusion. “You're still friends with them. You went to Slughorn’s Christmas party with Yann, you left our date to hang out with them all.”

“That's when I realised how stupid I was being. Thea found out I'd left you, and she went absolutely crazy, because she's what a friend should be like.”

“She did what?”

“She was so angry with me. We were arguing, right before the last prefect meeting, and she said all this stuff and she was  _ so _ cross with me. But not because I’d upset her. She was angry because she thought I’d hurt you. I can't imagine any of that Gryffindor group doing that.”

“Sorry, Thea asked how it went so I told her,” Scorpius shrugged.

“Don’t be sorry. She was right, everything she said to me was true.” Rose had a defiant look on her face. “But I want to change that.” She held her hand out to him in a formal handshake. “Friends? I don’t speak to Polly anymore.”

Scorpius smiled to himself at the gesture and took her hand, shaking it firmly. “I’d love to be friends.”

“Al will be thrilled,” Rose smirked but then her expression changed. “Um, he actually wasn’t very happy with me either. For the date thing.” 

“Sorry,” Scorpius mumbled automatically. 

“No, no it was actually a good thing.” She’d slowed her pace down as they were on the home straight back to the Entrance Hall. “I deserved that, him shouting at me. I’ve deserved that for a while. And actually, we talked to each other properly for the first time in years the other day.”

“Did you?” Scorpius wasn’t sure how he was meant to respond to that. 

“This year has made me realise that I don’t really  _ know  _ Albus anymore. We see each other all the time in the school holidays, just like we see all our other cousins, but we barely talk to each other and never about anything… important.” She’d completely stopped walking now, as if she wanted to say something but wasn’t sure how. “He can be quite a good listener, can’t he?” 

Scorpius couldn’t help a little proud smile taking over. “He’s the best.” 

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Malfoy the Platonic was shouting to say something else and not just leave those words ambiguously hanging in the air. Scorpius chose to ignore it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry, you’re all probably so frustrated that they still haven’t kissed, but a lot did go on here and I promise next chapter something BIG happens! :)   
> All the thanks and love to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for the endless loves❤️ you are both so talented and I love you!   
> My tumblr is littlerose13writes if you want to say hi/yell at me for writing the slowest slow burn know to man   
> Until Friday! Have a lovely week everyone!❤️


	23. Pepperup Potion

Scorpius was curled up in the common room, running his eyes over a Muggle Studies essay and trying to ignore a group of giggling second years who were attempting to levitate one of their pet lizards over the other. Albus was at Quidditch and would be for another hour, so it was a surprise when, at the end of Scorpius’ next sentence, he looked up to see Albus ambling over, looking glum.

“Got sent back from training. My head hurts,” he said, flopping miserably onto the sofa beside Scorpius, “and I can’t stop coughing.”

“You don’t sound great,” Scorpius responded. “Why don’t you lie down?”

Scorpius meant in his bed but Albus took him much more literally and fell to one side, lying across the sofa and resting his head into Scorpius’ lap. He closed his eyes and pouted.

It was very difficult not to be aware of how close Albus’ head was to a part of his body that he really didn’t need to be thinking about at this moment. He stared resolutely at his essay, but the words wriggled round the page and nothing was going in.

Albus’ eyelids fluttered open and he met Scorpius’ eyes mournfully. “Will you stroke my hair, please? It’s what Mum always does when I’m ill.”

“Of course, if that’s what you want.”

Albus nodded and closed his eyes again.

“Okay,” Scorpius muttered and he held his essay in one hand, pretending to still be reading it. His other hand fell to Albus’ dark, messy hair and he ran his fingers through the strands once, then again. It felt wonderfully soft between his fingers.

“Mmm, that’s nice,” Albus sighed in appreciation.

“You’re burning up.” As Scorpius ran his fingertips across Albus’ forehead and up into his hair, he felt a definite warmth which didn’t match the coldness of the weather outside or the room they were in. He placed the back of his palm against his best friend’s forehead. “Seriously, Albus. I think you have a fever.”

“My head hurts,” he repeated in a mournful voice.

“Did you feel ill before practice started?”

His eyelids flicked open again and he just stared up at Scorpius and nodded.

“You should have rested, you’ve probably made things worse. Here, you should drink some water.”

He reached out with difficulty to retrieve his own water bottle from the nearby table with Albus’ head still resting on his thigh. Albus watched him and reluctantly pulled himself upright, leaning weakly against the back of the sofa. He accepted the water bottle and took a long sip.

Scorpius grabbed his wrist and placed two fingers on it, checking his pulse. With a jolt, he realised the last time he’d done that was for his own mother when he’d been helping her check her vital signs.

“What are you doing?”

“Checking you don’t have hypothermia. It’s freezing out there.”

“I don’t have hypothermia, but thankyou, Healer Scorpius.” Albus drank more of the water and shivered involuntarily. Scorpius placed his hand on Albus’ head again and felt it was still burning hot.

“You should go to bed. Maybe take some Pepperup?”

Albus pulled a face. “I hate that stuff.”

“It’ll help bring your fever down, come on.” Scorpius stood up and held a hand out to Albus.

“You can stay here, do your essay.”

“But then who will stroke your hair?”

Albus smiled weakly and allowed Scorpius to pull him to his feet. He trailed behind him all the way to the dorm and sat on the end of his bed as soon as they got there. Without the slightest trace of embarrassment, Albus pulled off his Quidditch training hoodie and t-shirt so he was sat bare-chested.

“It’s too hot in here.”

The Slytherin dormitories were notorious for being some of the coldest rooms in the castle, even with the enchantments placed on them. Even as he complained it was hot, Albus was shivering, his teeth chattering.

“No, you need Pepperup. Here.” Scorpius wasn’t sure how much longer he could face a half-dressed Albus and act platonically (unless this was one of those times where they just weren’t platonic, but even then it was nothing like _that_ ). He hid his face away, and rooted in Albus’ drawers for a pair of clean pyjamas, which he threw across to his best friend before looking in his own bedside cabinet for Pepperup Potion.

“Christmas pyjamas,” Albus laughed from behind Scorpius, and he emerged with the Pepperup to see Albus curling up on his bed in the pyjamas (which were indeed patterned with Hippogriffs in Santa hats). Scorpius levitated his Quidditch kit to the laundry basket at the end of his bed, and sat down beside him.

“You have to sit up to take this.”

Albus groaned and pulled himself into a sitting position, bringing his knees up to his chest and hugging them to himself, still shivering. Scorpius pulled the blanket from the end of his bed over to them and wrapped it around his best friend’s shoulders. Albus smiled gratefully and took the potion flask in both hands.

“You’re going to make a really good Healer one day, you know that, Scor.” He downed the potion and grimaced, before smoke poured out of his ears like he’d just overdosed on Pepper Imps.

“I hope so,” Scorpius whispered while Albus slid down into his bed and Scorpius covered him with his duvet. “Do you want me to stroke your hair now?”

“Uh-huh,” Albus said quietly, his face squished against his pillow. “Then can we sleep here tonight?”

He was referencing the unintentional schedule they followed of taking it in turns; they’d slept in Albus’ bed the previous night too. Scorpius wanted nothing more than to curl up beside Albus and stroke his hair until they both fell asleep, but the voice of reason had other ideas. He shook his head. “I don’t want to catch whatever you have.”

Albus’ eyes opened. “Surprised you haven’t already, in that case. You’re in here every other night.”

It was the first time either of them had said out loud that they’d been sharing a bed for the past fortnight. Scorpius had wanted to bring it up but at the same time been afraid it would stop if he did, and Albus continued to act like nothing was going on.

“Go on, stay.” Albus persisted, sounding seconds from sleep. “It’ll make me feel better.”

_It’ll make me feel better._

Scorpius didn’t need telling twice and he gently curled up beside Albus, his fingers stroking dark, tangled hair until he wasn’t aware of what he was doing anymore.  


* * *

 

Albus was ordered by Madam Pomfrey to rest, take more pepperup and call for her if he felt any worse. He slept for most of the following day and Scorpius missed his presence in class. He was a bit late for History Of Magic because he rushed back to the dorm at breaktime to check on Albus. His fever had broken by now but he was still a bit shaky and shivery, and he opened his eyes blearily when Scorpius pulled the curtain back.

“Time s’it?” he asked in adorable confusion.

“Go back to sleep. You’re taking today off, remember? There’s soup if you get hungry,” Scorpius explained, pulling Albus’ duvet back over him. “I’ll come back at lunch.”

“I love you, Scor.”

It had been a sleep-addled, fever-induced, semi-conscious mumble into his pillow, but Scorpius felt as if he were floating.

“Love you too,” he whispered, pushing Albus’ hair back from his forehead and out of his already closed eyes.

Scorpius knew he was probably wandering around in a dreamy daze for most of the morning after that, as he replayed Albus’ words in his head over and over again. He was snapped from his memories when Rose came bounding up to him in the corridor with an almost manic grin.

“Hi, Scorp!” she said, smiling brightly.

“Hello, Rose,” he said kindly.

She’d done this every time they’d seen each other this week, presumably in an attempt to prove they really were friends now. To whom, Scorpius wasn’t sure.

“Please could you give these to Albus? They’re notes from today’s Arithmancy lesson.” She thrust some neatly copied notes into Scorpius’ hand.

“Of course, I’ll pass them on.” He smiled and accepted the notes.

“Thanks. Thea was going to do it but… well, I wanted to. Is he alright?”

“He’ll be okay, it’s a flu, nothing life-threatening,” Scorpius assured her.

Rose looked concerned. “I hope you don’t get it too, Scorpius. Those things are so contagious and-” she abruptly stopped talking.

“I feel fine,” Scorpius said quietly into the awkward silence Rose’s words had left.

“Good, I’m glad! Well, it was good to see you.”

She gave him a very brief hug and skipped off. Scorpius stood rooted to the spot; he didn’t think he’d ever seen Rose skip in his life, and she’d definitely never hugged him.

“Want me to tell her to tone it down a bit?” Thea appeared at his elbow, smirking into the distance where Rose had left.

“Um, tone it down?”

“You know, just in case you hadn’t noticed she’s trying to be nicer to you and Albus now. I told her it was overboard, she told me I didn’t get it.” Thea laughed.

“Oh, no, it’s alright. She’s just being nice, isn’t she?”

She looped her arm through his and started to walk to lunch. “She’s being weird. I think she’s trying to make up for the last four years in just this week.”

As usual, Thea seemed to be able to just _get_ the people around her, Scorpius thought as they left for the Great Hall together.  


* * *

 

By Friday, Albus was much better and it was only Madam Pomfrey’s insistence that he rest another day that kept him out of class. Scorpius took extra diligent notes so he could share them with Albus and he hurried straight back to the dormitory as soon as his last lesson was over.

When he arrived at the dormitory, it was to see Albus sat cross legged on his bed, his hair damp from the shower, and a pile of socks sat in front of him. His music was playing loudly and he didn’t notice Scorpius was there until he spoke.

“Er, what are you doing?”

Albus looked up at him with a grin, a sock in each hand, and his music quietened by itself as the song changed (he was using Scorpius’ birthday present). “Got bored, so I’m organising my sock drawer. Did you know most of them actually match up?”

“You haven’t worn a pair of matching socks since the day I met you in first year,” Scorpius grinned, joining Albus on his bed.

Albus shrugged and threw a sock at Scorpius’ chest. “I think that one’s yours.”

It was a black sock which did indeed belong to Scorpius, but as it had been a present from Grandfather Lucius and was emblazoned with the Malfoy family crest, Scorpius hadn’t noticed he was missing one; they weren’t his first choice of sock.

“You can keep it,” Scorpius chuckled, throwing it back.

“Don’t you want to wear it to see your dad tomorrow?” Albus asked in mock surprise.

“I think he’d prefer these ones,” Scorpius laughed, selecting a pair of vibrantly-coloured, polka dot socks from Albus’ pile.

“Lily’s idea of a great Christmas present.” He stood up from the bed and gathered the pile of paired socks into his arms. “What time are you meeting him?”

“Around ten, after he finishes his meeting with the new Potions teacher. Do you still want to come with us for lunch?”

“If I’m still invited.” Albus dumped the socks back into his trunk.

“Of course! Be ready for twelve, I’ll come and find you.”

* * *

The next morning, Scorpius eased out of bed quietly so as not to wake Albus up, who was still sleeping soundly. He got up and dressed, feeling only the tiniest bit nervous. He was mainly looking forward to being able to tell his dad that something was finally helping him, but it was always a bit nerve-wracking talking about himself so much.

Draco Malfoy was waiting for him in the Entrance Hall, in his usual all-black robes, his blond ponytail immaculate as ever.

“Dad!” Scorpius cried, hurrying over to him and feeling so pleased when he was pulled into a warm hug. Some breakfast stragglers stared curiously but Scorpius didn’t care. “Did you have your meeting?”

“All done and dusted. You should definitely take Potions NEWT, Scorpius. Professor Jacobs seems like she’ll be a very good teacher.”

“I plan on taking it! I have to if I want to be a Healer.”

Draco smiled proudly and smoothed Scorpius’ hair into place (he would never ruffle his hair, that would make him look untidy).

“Would you like to go for a walk around the grounds? I know it’s chilly, but you know I’m rather good at warming charms.” He gestured to the castle doors.

“Yes please,” Scorpius smiled and walked with him.

“Where’s Albus this morning?” Draco asked conversationally as they descended the steps together.

Scorpius checked his watch and sniggered. “It’s Saturday, he’s still asleep.”

Draco smiled fondly, although he could have no idea that the main reason Scorpius was laughing was because Albus was still asleep _in his bed._

“So, how have you been, Scorpius?”

Scorpius nodded. “Better than ever, life is good.”

Even though things with his dad were improving steadily, they weren’t quite at the stage where Scorpius felt he could confess to his dad that he and Albus were sort of, maybe, acting like they were more than friends. But it wasn’t a big deal. And nothing had actually _happened_.

“You’re still having the attacks? What about the nightmares?” His dad looked concerned.

Scorpius brushed the tip of his shoe against the grass. “I’ve had _one_ since October. The exercises Victoire gave me have helped with the nightmares, they really have. And that therapy session I had at Christmas.”

_So has sharing a bed with my best friend every night._

“About that, I’ve spoken with Professor McGonagall and she’s agreed for the therapist you saw at home to come to school, if you want to that is. No pressure at all.”

Scorpius smiled. “I’d like that, I think.”

His dad looked pleased with himself and twisted his wedding band around his finger. “Well, what is the exciting news you forgot to include in your letter?”

“Oh, yes, sorry about that. Well, Victoire’s been researching a new way to help me if I have a panic attack. Not just me, I mean to help anyone who has panic attacks. Anyway, she told Albus about it and he worked out how to do it and tried it out and it really works! It stopped almost instantly!” He couldn’t help a quiver of excitement flooding visibly through his body.

His dad appraised him dryly. “Sounds miraculous. What is it?”

“A patronus! Albus learnt to cast a patronus, it’s a raven and it’s so good, and he cast it and it landed on my shoulder and almost instantly I could breathe again.” Scorpius heard an over excited tone creeping into his voice as he relived the experience.

His dad stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked anguished. “That’s… wonderful, Scorpius.”

Scorpius stopped walking. “Why aren’t you pleased?”

“I am pleased,” Draco said, turning back to him and forcing a smile. “I’m very pleased that you’ve found something to help.”

“You’re not. What’s wrong, Dad?”

They were stood facing each other, Scorpius’ question echoing between them.

Draco hesitated. “When I read your letter, that you’ve found something to help, I thought that meant I could be the one to help you. When Albus isn’t around of course.”

“You _can_ help me, Dad. I want you to!” Scorpius moved forward and nearly took both his dad’s hands in emphasis but thought better of it at the last minute; they were still in his pockets anyway.

“No, Scorpius. I can’t.”

“Why not?”

He took his hands out of his pockets, his palms facing Scorpius. “Because I can’t cast a patronus.”

The admittance hung between them as if it were a real, physical object floating in space.

Scorpius furrowed his brow. “Yes you can. I’ve seen you, and it’s a scorpion, like my constellation, and you told me it’s always the strongest when you think about the day I was born.”

“That memory… doesn’t work for me anymore. Nothing does.”

“Because they all have Mum in them,” Scorpius said quietly.

He didn’t need to wait for the confirming nod his dad gave him. It wasn’t a question.

Scorpius started to walk again and his dad followed. “You know, Dad, just because she’s not here doesn’t mean our memories of her are gone. They can still be your happiest memories if you let them.”

“It… it hurts to remember her.”

“Wouldn’t it hurt more to forget her?”

“I’m _never_ going to forget her,” he said fiercely and Scorpius recoiled but he took a deep breath. His dad wasn’t looking at him as they walked and Scorpius scrutinised him before continuing.

“Then stop acting like you’re trying to.” His voice shook a bit but he carried on. “I _want_ to talk about Mum, and I want to talk about her with you, because you’re the only other person in the world who truly understands who she is and what she means to our family. But whenever I try to bring her up, you end the conversation as quickly as possible or you act like you haven’t even heard me. I know it’s hard, but I want you to talk to me about her, Dad. Please?”

His dad looked up, and Scorpius panicked for a second that he’d pushed him too far. His face was working furiously to remain expressionless, but a single tear rolled down his cheek. Scorpius knew his dad cried, because he’d heard him, but he’d never before seen him succumb to tears. Not even at Mum’s funeral, or on the day she died, and that had hurt Scorpius even more.

He followed his instincts and pulled his dad into a hug. It was a split second before his dad’s arms were tightly around him too and Scorpius was crying through the sheer emotion of it all.

“I’m sorry, Scorpius,” Dad whispered into his ear.

“Don’t be, _I’m_ sorry,” Scorpius managed through tears as his dad pulled away just enough so he could look into Scorpius’ eyes.

“I’ve gone about this all in the wrong way but I’m working to change that, really I am. I’ve been speaking to someone too, just once or twice, but it’s helped. I should have shown you I was hurting too. I thought I was protecting you, by hiding my grief. I now see that that was a mistake, and I’m blessed to have a son like you who didn’t give up on me. Your mother didn’t give up on me, I see so much of her in you, Scorpius. You’re kind, like she was, like I never manage to be.”

“You’re kind too, Dad.”

Draco shook his head. “Not in the all-encompassing and constant way Astoria was and the way you are. She would have known exactly how to reach you, not let you slip away like I did. I’ll never forgive myself.”

“I forgive you,” Scorpius whispered. “I love you, Dad. I just want you to be happy.”

“I’m the closest to happy I’ve been in a while, Scorpius, because you seem happier. When you talk about school and being a Prefect and the new friends you’ve made and Albus, I’m so proud of you. After what happened last year, the bravery you’ve always shown was clear to me. But you continue to amaze me everyday, Scorpius, and I’m so lucky to have a son like you. I love you so much.”

“Wow, you’ve never said anything like that to me before.” Scorpius’ voice was high-pitched and squeaky.

“Another mistake, I should be telling you every single day how proud I am of you.” He rested a hand on Scorpius’ shoulder and smiled gently. “Although I think our owl would get tired.”

Scorpius chuckled. “So can we talk about Mum?”

His dad’s smile grew. “Absolutely. Let me tell you about the time she insisted we decorate the Christmas tree by hand, no magic at all.”

“I remember that! I was only three but I remember. She hid your wand.”

The rest of the morning was spent wandering the grounds, frequent warming charms from his dad keeping them both from freezing, and long, detailed conversations about Astoria Malfoy. Scorpius felt lighter than air every time Draco shared with him something he didn’t know about his mum (like how she’d run away with him to Muggle London to watch the ballet for their first date) or memories he’d forgotten about because they were so long ago (like how he used to have blond curls just like Mum’s dark ones).

His favourite part of the conversation, though, was when Dad brought up a more recent memory that Scorpius shared and they could relive it together. They reminisced about his ninth birthday, when he wanted nothing more than a treehouse, and Mum had filled it with fairies and storybooks and loved to climb up with him. They recounted Christmas when Scorpius was twelve and brimming with excitement at the first-year spells he could now do, and the way Mum had listened to every single story about his ‘new friend Albus’ with such rapture. They talked and talked until it was almost midday.

Scorpius felt lighter than air when it was finally time for them to go to Hogsmeade, and it only had a tiny bit to do with how good Albus looked in the new cloak he’d got for his birthday. For just a split second, he almost reached out to take Albus’ hand as they were walking, and then he remembered that might invite questions neither of them were ready to answer.

At lunch, his dad was interested to hear from Albus about the Slytherin Quidditch team’s performance that term and Albus was only too willing to discuss it at length. He had just given a detailed recount of the first game of the season where he and Thea had worked together to secure that final goal before Lily caught the snitch.

“Lee Jordan’s daughter’s supposed to be very good. She is, is she?”

“Oh yeah, she’s amazing,” Albus replied enthusiastically. “And she’s a prefect with Scor.”

Scorpius was used to this sort of comment being followed by people assuming that he must have a crush on Thea just because they were prefects together, but his dad thankfully didn’t say anything of this sort.

“I’m really glad to hear people are being kind to you two these days.” He sipped his drink, looking very serious. “They are being kind, aren’t they?”

“Oh yes!” said Scorpius. “Almost everyone. Nobody talks about that… rumour anymore.”

“Pleased to hear it,” his dad smiled. “I was so worried every time we put you back on that train. Glad to hear it’s better now.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Scorpius whispered.

“Of course, I always knew you had Albus.”

“Your favourite Potter, right Mr Malfoy?”

A sly grin appeared on his dad’s face. “Oh by far. Speaking of which, how are your brother and sister?”

Albus nodded. “Fine. James got a contract to train with Puddlemere next season.”

“Good for him,” Draco replied.

“And Lily’s up to something.”

“Up to something?”

“Yep, Scor saw her trying to steal a unicorn before Christmas.” Albus said this in the same tone he would say that Scorpius had seen Lily reading a book in the library.

“Scorpius, what? Why didn’t you tell me?” Draco looked appalled.

“I didn’t think you’d be interested,” Scorpius muttered.

“Have you told your father, Albus?” Draco looked concerned.

Albus nodded. “He didn’t think there was anything to worry about. It’s Lily.”

His dad scoffed and Scorpius threw an apologetic look at Albus, but he didn’t seem to mind. “That doesn’t seem right.”

“It’s okay, she probably just wants to keep one as a pet. From the look of things, she wasn’t successful in stealing it, was she, Scor?”

Scorpius hesitated. Because although he hadn’t seen Lily remove the unicorn from the forest, and it looked to be putting up a good fight, she had tied it up and Poppy Longbottom had clearly been in on it too.

“Er, well, I don’t _think_ so.”

“Just don’t go getting yourselves caught up in any trouble, promise?” It was clear that his dad was talking more to Albus than he was talking to Scorpius.

Dad walked them back to the castle where they parted ways so Draco could floo home and Albus and Scorpius could get started on a particularly tricky piece of Transfiguration homework. They were en route to the common room and Scorpius noticed Albus was walking quite close to him.

“I thought your dad would say something about the patronus. You did tell him didn’t you?”

“Of course I did!” Scorpius responded, feeling himself turn red. “He’s really pleased.”

“I’m really pleased too,” Albus smiled.

“We talked about Mum a lot today too.”

“Just like you wanted to,” Albus said quietly after a pause. “I’m really happy that happened.”

“Me too,” Scorpius beamed and Albus flashed him an adorable smile then glanced around the empty corridor. Albus took his hand, holding it loosely within the folds of his cloak, but there was no doubt it was there. Scorpius smiled and said nothing, like he always did when something like this happened. Eventually Albus would be ready to talk about it, but for now, this would have to do.

They stayed hand in hand and, despite the cloak partly concealing their joined hands, it felt really nice to be walking the halls of Hogwarts in the way they would if they were together. Scorpius didn’t know what it meant to be somebody’s boyfriend, but he thought it might be something close to this. He almost wanted someone to see them together, to know that Albus was _his_ even though they hadn’t talked about it and nothing had even really happened.

Because there was no pretending they were just friends anymore. Scorpius found himself wondering (not for the first time) what it would be like to kiss Albus, how it would feel to have his body pressed up against his so close that their lips touched. Surely that was some kind of logical next step after how they’d been acting around each other?

Albus smiled across at him, his eyes flickering down to their joined hands for just a second, then back up to Scorpius. A million unsaid words passed between them, _we’re doing this because we like each other, aren’t we?_ This was perfection, Albus’ hand was so warm in his.

Something hard and heavy seemed to slam into Scorpius’ back, jolting him from his thoughts abruptly. The view of Albus’ green eyes and the feeling of his warm hand disappeared as his body was pulled out of place and he felt an arm slung across the top of his shoulder. And then the words, oh _Merlin,_ the words.

“Finally you two worked it out! I’m so happy, I could cry!”

It was Thea, because of course it was.

A gleeful grin, a theatrical sigh, and then she took one look at Scorpius’ face and blanched. Her arms fell to her sides and she swore under her breath, an agonised expression on her face.

“Oh _shit_. Er, so happy… to see my two friends here at the same time! I feel like we don’t hang out enough anymore, I miss you.” She spoke in a jolly voice, lightly punching the top of Albus’ arm.

Albus refused to meet her eye. “Look at us, just three friends, here in this corridor, being friends.”

“What time’s practice tomorrow, Thea?” Albus asked loudly, and she looked blank for a second before springing into awareness.

“Half past two, but Harper’s keeping us longer than normal.”

“In that case, I’d better get that Charms essay done. Bye.”

Albus turned on his heel and left in a flustered hurry without even looking back at Scorpius.

“We don't have a Charms essay to write,” Thea said in an anguished voice and she turned to Scorpius. But he wasn’t looking at her; he was staring into the distance at the point where Albus had just disappeared like he couldn’t wait to get out of there.

* * *

 

Scorpius was in pyjamas, ready for bed, and Albus was in the bathroom brushing his teeth. He was tired, and he was worried about Albus (who’d not returned until after dinner) and he wanted nothing more than to curl up with his best friend and wrap an arm around his shoulders and stroke his hair until they both drifted off. They’d maybe laugh a bit about how Thea saw them holding hands, decide it wasn’t a big deal, and it would maybe be a good opportunity to bring up a conversation about what in the world was going on between them.

 

Scorpius felt his eyelids flicker closed and knew he’d fall asleep soon if Albus didn’t hurry up, but he didn’t mind Albus waking him up by climbing into bed with him. He left the hangings of his bed open; Albus would close them when he came to bed too.

Some time later, Scorpius was vaguely aware that he was awake and the reason for his early wake up was his open hangings. He always slept with them closed and it was putting him off, the faint light from Cole’s lamp invading his sleep; he can’t have been asleep for more than a couple of hours. He got up onto his knees, remembering why they were open and registering sleepily that his bed was empty. Across the dormitory, he could see Albus’ own hangings pulled tightly shut.

Any possibility of a conversation about what was going on between them was clearly not going to happen that night.

Waking up the next morning felt colder than usual, as Scorpius was yet again reminded that he’d slept by himself for the first time in three weeks. He could have tried to kid himself, but he knew why Albus hadn’t joined him. It had everything to do with Thea seeing them holding hands; if Albus wasn’t even ready to talk to Scorpius about what was going on between them, he was unlikely to want Thea to know about it. Scorpius found he didn’t particularly care that Thea had seen them holding hands; it wasn’t as if they were doing anything wrong.

Albus’ reluctance to ever talk about how he was feeling was both a blessing and a curse in this situation. On the one hand, it was damn right annoying that Albus would rather bottle everything up than consider how he was actually feeling. On the other, Albus in this mood was very predictable and Scorpius knew how he’d choose to cope: flying, running, or music. Or a combination of the three.

His best friend’s empty bed was the biggest clue to where he would be. Albus _never_ got up early on a weekend. Scorpius knew what he needed to do, just like the last time Albus had been in a mood like this. He needed time to cool off first of all, but when he had, he could usually be persuaded with some gentle questioning to tell Scorpius what was wrong.

He’d go outside, find Albus wherever he was on his run and tell him he didn’t need to be embarrassed that Thea had seen them holding hands. She wouldn’t say anything if they didn’t want her to, but maybe this was a good time to talk about _why_ they’d been holding hands. Scorpius wondered if he’d even be brave enough to tell Albus that he’d like to hold his hand in front of other people all the time, if he wanted him to.

It was cold and icy outside and Scorpius wrapped his scarf tightly around his chin to trap as much warmth as possible. Inside, however, he was burning with anticipation at what he was about to do.

He spotted Albus almost immediately and he was momentarily taken aback by how attractive he looked. He’d never seen Albus actually running before, only before and after, but he moved fluidly, his earpieces in and a look of sheer concentration on his face. He didn’t seem to see Scorpius at first, so he strolled around a bit near the water’s edge, waiting for him to come back on his next lap of the lake.

Albus never did come back around. Scorpius waited for longer than he could possibly take to loop back, before giving up and accepting the truth: Albus didn’t want to talk to him.

He stared at the rippling surface of the lake and sighed. Where had this all gone so wrong? This time yesterday he’d been going to lunch with Albus and his dad, everything had been moving in just the right direction, Scorpius had been about to talk to Albus about how he felt.

But it was spoilt now.

A jagged rock near his right foot looked appealing enough for Scorpius to pick it up. He turned it over in his hands, not knowing what to do. Was Albus ashamed to be seen holding his hand?

Scorpius threw the rock into the lake forcefully, watching it plunge into the icy depths, creating circular ripples. The Albus he knew wasn’t ashamed of him.

Scorpius tried again after lunch and more work on his Transfiguration homework, which he’d resigned himself to doing by himself. Albus was nowhere to be seen and when Cole asked Scorpius where he was so they could walk to Quidditch together, Scorpius simply replied he needed some time by himself today.

He timed it just right so he was down near the Quidditch pitch at the end of the Slytherin team’s practice, his broomstick on his back. The plan was to ask Albus to come flying with him, because Albus would never say no to that and then they didn’t have to talk straight away, which would suit Albus just fine. The Slytherin Quidditch team left their practice and Scorpius caught Albus’ eye hopefully, his broomstick in his hand. Albus glanced at him briefly.

“Sorry, can’t right now. I’ve got… Cole needs help with the Charms essay.”

He was gone in an instant, leaving Scorpius watching his retreating figure.

“There still isn’t a Charms essay,” Scorpius muttered to himself, wondering if he’d enjoy flying on his own.

“Walk?”

Thea gazed at him sympathetically and he nodded glumly. She looped her arm through his and turned him around, walking away from the direction Albus had gone in.

“Have I messed everything up?” Thea started after a few minutes of pensive silence where Scorpius made sure he wasn’t going to cry.

“To be honest, Thea, things were about as messed up as they could be anyway.”

She eyed him suspiciously. “What’s going on between you two?”

Scorpius rubbed the bridge of his nose agitatedly. “I wish I could tell you. I’ve got no idea. We’re more than friends, I suppose, but nothing’s really happened. He never wants to talk about it.”

“Have you kissed?” she asked casually.

“No!” Scorpius replied in shock.

“But you like him, don’t you? That much is obvious.”

Scorpius resigned himself to nodding.

“And he likes you,” she continued.

“He does?”

“Didn’t you just say you’re more than friends? It takes two people to hold hands.”

“But… I don’t know if Albus _likes_ me. He’s just… like that sometimes.”

“Of course he likes you, Scorp. You really don’t see it?”

“ _Listen to him, Scorpius. He’s trying to tell you._ Is that what you meant?” He’d stopped walking, stock still and gawking at her.

“Yes! Of course it is!”

“Since when?!” He was incredulous, unable to comprehend what Thea was trying to suggest.

“I don’t know. He’s liked you for a while.”

“Are you… are you _sure_?” Scorpius heard a slight tremor in his voice.

“Quite sure.”

“He told you?”

“Merlin no! He’s Albus Potter,” Thea grinned. “He doesn’t talk about that stuff. He wouldn’t even tell me the name of some third year who apparently has a crush on him.”

“Poppy Longbottom,” Scorpius couldn’t help but say but then he flapped his hand. “That’s beside the point. If he hasn’t told you, then you can’t be any surer than me. And I have absolutely no idea what’s going on.”

“You two are the most oblivious humans to ever exist. I’ve never known two people say so much to each other without actually saying anything!” Thea rolled her eyes heavily.

“I don’t… it’s not…” Scorpius spluttered.

“You need to say something. Tell him you like him, because he’s sure as hell not going to do it first.” Thea waved her hand in the general direction of the castle, indicating Albus’ recent behaviour.

“What happens if you’re wrong?”

“Do you really think I might be?” Thea challenged.

“I don’t know! This is the least straightforward thing ever.”

“Just be honest with him, Scorpius. I’ll be here for you whatever happens.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See? A BIG thing happened (probably not the big thing you were all hoping for but bear with me)  
> So much love and thanks to Beks/morphin3 and Marina/per-mare-ad-astra for always being willing to listen to my plot anxiety rambles and helping me make these chapters coherent! (Also credit to Marina for the hc about Drastoria’s first date being to the Muggle ballet, if we’re all realllly nice to her she might write it!)  
> Tumblr: littlerose13writes  
> Have a lovely weekend everyone!❤️


	24. Paper Swans

* * *

The opportunity to follow Thea’s advice and ‘just be honest’ with Albus was easier said than done when his best friend seemed to be avoiding him like spattergroit. On Monday morning, he woke up cold and alone to find Albus had already left the dormitory, and he didn’t ever show up at breakfast, not that Scorpius could convince himself to eat anything anyway. He sipped tea and kept glancing at the doorway, but Albus didn’t arrive.

In lessons, Albus avoided eye contact with him and when it got to Charms where they would usually sit together, he swapped seats with Cole. Cole didn’t say anything, but he looked faintly apologetic when Scorpius fell down in the space beside him, and muttered something about being there if Scorpius wanted to talk. 

They ran into each other in the dormitory shortly before Scorpius had to leave for prefect rounds, and he’d really tried to follow Thea’s advice, but it was easier said than done when Albus shut the conversation down faster than a racing broom. 

“ _ Albus, can we-“ _

_ “Sorry, Scor. I’ve got Quidditch tonight.” _

_ “I was going to say  _ can we talk? _ ” Scorpius finished lamely to the swinging dormitory door.  _

“And he’s avoiding me,” Scorpius finished telling the whole sorry tale to Thea while they were on rounds together.

“I don’t know what to say, Scorp. What’s he playing at? He doesn’t even have Quidditch tonight!” She pointed at herself. “Look, here I am, not at Quidditch.”

Scorpius shrugged. “I think maybe you got it wrong, Thea. He doesn’t like me like that, otherwise he wouldn’t be acting like this. I’m just a friend to him, and now he knows I like him, everything’s weird.” 

He tried to ignore the overwhelming wave of sadness crashing through him as he said this; it was exactly what he never wanted to happen with Albus. He’d always said he’d rather keep his feelings a secret if it meant not losing Albus. But now he’d given himself away, and it clearly wasn’t what Albus wanted from him, hence the avoiding. 

“Scorpius, he was holding your hand! I don’t do that with anyone I just consider a friend.” 

“Maybe  _ I _ was holding  _ his _ hand,” Scorpius argued. “I’m telling you, he doesn’t like me like that.” 

Thea chewed her lip shrewdly. “I still think he does. Want me to talk to him?”

“No!” Scorpius said hurriedly. “No offence. That would make everything worse. He won’t even talk to  _ me _ .”

“Because this whole thing is  _ about  _ you! Maybe if I just-“

“Please don’t, Thea.”

“Okay, if you don’t want me to then I won’t.” 

“Maybe I need to make it clear that I want things to go back to normal.”

“ _ Do you _ want things to go back to normal?” she asked knowingly. 

Scorpius felt that, at this point, he’d accept anything if it meant Albus would talk to him again. “I want my best friend back,” he replied shortly. 

“Then you need to talk to him. Tell him you don’t want to lose your friendship. But, Scorp, you should tell him how you feel too. Does he definitely know you like him? Have you told him in words?” 

“I think I was making it fairly clear, because I thought-” He hesitated, not wanting to continue. Thea’s encouraging smile spurred him on. “I thought… I thought he liked me too. He was the one always holding my hand, and being all  _ touchy _ and-”

Thea looked triumphant at Scorpius’ incoherent stuttering. “So he was flirting with you, you were flirting back, and now you’re not speaking?” 

For the first time, the situation seemed amusing rather than heartbreaking. Scorpius snorted with laughter, and once he started he found it was very difficult to stop. All his emotions from the past twenty four hours were manifesting themselves into laughing maniacally here in the corridor with Thea. 

“It’s really quite ridiculous, isn’t it?” Scorpius wiped at his eyes. “He can’t have been flirting with me, I must have understood him wrong.” 

“You know, it’s just a wild suggestion, but as both of you do speak English,” her voice dripped with sarcasm, “maybe if you used actual words, there wouldn’t be any problems with understanding what the other meant.” 

They’d finished rounds and arrived back to the common room together, Scorpius feeling lighter than he had all day as he laughed again at Thea’s words. 

“Actual words sound miraculous, there’s just the small matter of Albus currently not speaking to me that hinders your bright idea. How can I talk to him if he keeps avoiding me?” 

Thea gently nudged his arm, nodding her head to a point in the distance and like a moth to a flame, Scorpius’ eyes were instantly drawn to Albus, sat at a table with Cole and doing homework. His eyes widened and he looked back at Thea, any bravado he’d been feeling instantly dying at the idea of  _ actually  _ talking to Albus. 

At that moment, Albus looked up and spotted Scorpius and Thea standing together. Looking like a deer caught in wandlight, he quickly glanced away and started to pack up his homework, a hurt expression on his face. Thea nodded and Scorpius hurried after Albus as he disappeared up to the dormitory, steeling himself as he went. 

“Albus, let’s talk, please,” he said desperately as he burst into the dorm. “I need to-”

“I don’t need to hear you say it.” His hangings were shut in seconds.

That night, Scorpius was tossing and turning, unable to get the hurt expression on Albus’ face out of his mind. He wanted his best friend and even though it had only been two days, he missed him so much it was physically painful. He felt utterly miserable there in his bed all alone, knowing Albus was only feet from him in the dorm, but miles and miles away. 

What else could he do? Lock Albus in a broom cupboard and force him to listen? And then what would he even say? Chances are, Scorpius admitting his feelings to Albus would mean he’d lose his best friend forever, if this was how he was reacting to Thea seeing them hold hands. 

He thought about Albus’ words:  _ I don’t need to hear you say it _ . 

He knew. Albus knew Scorpius had feelings for him, and he  _ didn’t need to hear it.  _ Well, that was that. 

His duvet felt stifling and heavy on top of him and he kicked it away impatiently, punching his pillow into a more comfortable shape and trying again to summon sleep. The dorm’s silence was pressing in on him from all sides, punctuated by Cole’s heavy breathing and then another noise. It came from Albus’ bed and it was unmistakable. 

Albus was crying.

Every instinct in him wanted to get up and check he was alright. He couldn’t lie there listening to Albus suffer, so he quietly crept out of bed and towards the soft sniffling noises coming from behind Albus’ bed hangings. 

A floorboard creaked beneath his feet and the sniffling stopped, until all noise from Albus was quickly stifled by what Scorpius presumed was his portable two-way silencing charm. 

He had a panic attack that night, and for the first time ever, he was all alone and simply had to suffer through it. 

* * *

When lessons were over for the day on Tuesday, Scorpius hid himself away in the library instead of going to dinner. He’d not seen Albus once all day to the point where he was starting to think he’d borrowed the invisibility cloak again to avoid Scorpius more thoroughly. His eyes stung and his head throbbed as he stared at his Herbology notes, which he’d been unable to make sense of in class. The quiet atmosphere and smell of books usually calmed him enough to concentrate, but not today.

“What the hell is up with my brother? Why does he look as if his birthday’s been cancelled?” 

Lily Potter cornered him and he looked up at her in fright, his sleep deprivation and emotional state not equipped to handle this. 

“Merlin, you don’t look great either. Is this just what OWLs do to a person?”

“It’s nothing, Lily. I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Have you two had an argument?” She slammed down a huge textbook and invited herself into the chair opposite. Scorpius was confused to see it was a NEWT Potions textbook that Lily really had no business reading. 

“Sort of,” Scorpius muttered, giving nothing away.

“Oh no, is this about what you got him for his birthday? Did he not like it?”

“What? Lily, no, he did like it. It’s nothing to do with that.” 

“Ohhhh,” Lily suddenly said knowingly. “Did he tell you about… you know.” Scorpius looked at her blankly and she winked. “You know, the  _ thing _ .” 

“The thing?” 

“No, you’d know if he’d told you.” She thought for a second. “Maybe that’s why he’s sad, because he still hasn’t told you. He doesn’t listen to me, else I’d be trying to help.” 

“Still hasn’t told me what?” 

“Nothing. He’ll get around to it eventually.” 

“Lily!” 

“This is all just me guessing, Scorpius. Maybe he isn’t even planning to tell you at all, although he should.” She opened her huge textbook randomly and started flicking through it. “Do you know anything about powdered root of asphodel?” 

“I know it’s not an ingredient you need in third year,” Scorpius said suspiciously, thankful for the subject change. He’d had quite enough of things Albus was too scared to tell him. 

“No, no, not an ingredient I need,” Lily muttered. “If I add it to a potion containing gillyweed, will it catch fire?”

Scorpius furrowed his brow. “Have you mistaken me for Professor Slughorn?”

“No, you’re much better looking,” Lily said unabashedly and Scorpius blushed.

“Okay, you win.” He sighed. “I don’t think it would catch fire, although Albus is the Potions expert and not me. Maybe ask him.” 

“No way! He already snitched on me to Dad once. Which, by the way, I know was  _ your  _ fault.”

Scorpius looked apologetic. “Sorry. I didn’t think he was going to tell your dad.”

“You’re such an only child, Scorpius.” 

“Why do you need to know all this?” Scorpius looked around to check nobody could hear. “And what have you done with that unicorn?” he added in a whisper. 

Lily smirked and closed her textbook, sliding it back across the table towards her. She leant forward and tapped Scorpius on the end of his nose. “Nothing to worry about. Mind if I do my homework here?”

“No, go ahead.”

“Thanks.” She sank back in her chair a bit. “You know, I guessed Albus was probably sad because of you. Don’t get me wrong, my brother’s as sulky as a scarlet fairy, but I’ve never seen him like that before.”

“Where did…” Scorpius cleared his throat and tried to remain casual. “Where did you see him?” 

“Gryffindor Common room, about fifteen minutes ago. That was my first clue, because he  _ never  _ comes in there. Second clue was him and James getting all weird and whispery like they used to when I was little and they thought I couldn’t hear them. They’ll never tell me what’s going on, but I thought perhaps you might.”

“I can see why you thought I’d be a more likely option,” Scorpius sighed.

“Out of concern for my brother, you understand.” She placed one hand over her heart dramatically. “I mean, Al never cries.”

Scorpius felt cold. “He was  _ crying _ again?”

Lily nodded casually. “And he won’t even tell me  _ why.  _ Me, his own sister!” 

A heavy, dull sensation spread through Scorpius’ chest until he felt as if he were being dragged downwards. 

“Oh, Scorpius.” Lily reached out and rubbed his shoulder. “Do you need to cry too?”

“No,” Scorpius squeaked but his voice cracked as he did. 

“Don’t bottle it up. Crying’s a great stress reliever,” she said calmly, scooting her chair closer. She took one look at him and opened her arms out, enveloping him in them in a surprisingly similar way to her mother. 

Scorpius couldn’t help it. All the disappointment and heartbreak from the past week crashed over him in a wave of emotion until he was sobbing into Lily’s shoulder. “Sorry, Lily,” he choked and she pulled away and looked at him.

“You two are so silly. This is ridiculous! Whatever he did, he’s clearly sorry. Unless it was you who did something, but you seem very sorry too.”

“Mmhmm,” Scorpius muttered, a few stray tears spilling over his cheeks as Lily hugged him. How could he possibly explain to Albus’ little sister that the reason they weren’t speaking was because they’d been secretly acting like a couple for three weeks and now somebody had seen them? Why was that grounds to be this upset? “It’s complicated,” he eventually choked out. 

Lily sighed and rubbed the top of his arms. “You two’ll sort this out. Albus can be an idiot, believe me I know, but even he’s not stupid enough to mess this up.” 

“Thanks, Lily,” Scorpius whispered, embarrassed.

“What are little sisters for?” she said, nudging him. “So, how about gillyweed and daisy petals? Can they be mixed together?”

* * *

A lack of Albus’ company meant Scorpius was spending most of his free time with Imogen and Ava, who were only too happy to have him, even if they didn’t really understand why. They were fun and friendly, even if they did change the topic of their conversation faster than he could keep up with. They’d been discussing the pros and cons of Imogen dyeing the tips of her long hair pink, which Scorpius had been finding fairly interesting, but suddenly things had moved onto the Hogwarts dress code and Scorpius wasn’t sure how it had happened.

“We’re doing it this week,” Ava stated. “There’s at least fifty of us!” 

“I can’t wait to see the looks on their faces when we all just turn up to classes on Friday afternoon wearing each others’ uniform.”

“They can’t put us  _ all  _ in detention!” 

“And even if they do, we’ll just turn up to that in trousers too.” Imogen grinned triumphantly.

“They’ll get the message eventually. It’s not like we’re refusing to wear uniform at all, just making it fairer.”

“I hope so.” Imogen checked her watch. “I’m going to bed, goodnight.” 

Scorpius felt a swirling in his stomach which had nothing to do with how he hadn’t been able to bring himself to eat a proper meal all week. He didn’t want to go to his cold, lonely bed, a constant reminder that Albus wasn’t speaking to him, and with the added fear that he’d have another panic attack by himself. He felt sick with nerves at the prospect and realised he wasn’t going to even come close to sleep. 

“Me too, you coming, Scorpius?” Imogen asked kindly and Scorpius shook his head.

“Last minute… Muggle Studies homework,” he invented wildly. “Just remembered.” 

The two girls left and Scorpius found parchment and a quill, unsure what he was doing because he didn’t even have any Muggle Studies homework. The common room was slowly emptying out due to the lateness of the hour, so nobody would notice that he was just scribbling aimlessly. 

As he scribbled, he tried to think of some of the breathing techniques Victoire had taught him, and the way his therapist had talked about trying to separate out each emotion he was feeling. His mind didn’t feel any quieter than it had before he started.

He put his quill down and found his fingers going through motions he hadn’t even thought about since the summer before his third year and those long waits by his mum’s bed side in the hospital and at home. Before long, the sheet of parchment was a paper swan, and by the time the common room was empty, he had a whole flock of differently sized swans in front of him.

Origami always made him think of his mother. Swans were Astoria’s specialty, because they were the only origami she knew how to do, and she’d taught Scorpius too. Her patronus was a swan which was why she’d taught herself that one. Together, they’d tried to make the tiniest swan they could manage, and then when she couldn’t manage the fiddly folding anymore, they’d enlarged some parchment to the size of a bedsheet and tried to make a lifesize origami swan. 

He watched the little paper swans swimming around the table top, wondering if his mum would know what to do if she were here to help him now. She knew all about Albus, because of course Scorpius had told her everything about his best friend, but she’d never know what Albus truly meant to him now. Scorpius hadn’t even really known himself when she was still alive, but still, she would know what to do in this situation. 

“Scorpius?” a whisper and somebody in a cloak and scarf, clearly just coming in from outside came closer to him.

If he couldn’t ask his mum for advice, maybe this was the next best thing.

“What are you still doing up?” 

“Hello Thea. Been somewhere?” he asked, ignoring her question. 

“Out,” she said casually and sat beside him looking fearful. “What are you doing?” 

Her tone of voice and body language was similar to Madam Pomfrey at the bedside of an injured Quidditch player who’d been reckless.

“Can’t sleep,” he muttered, gesturing to the gently swimming origami swans.

“Tomorrow.” 

“Tomorrow?”

“Yes, tomorrow. Tell him tomorrow. Tell him you like him tomorrow.”

“I don’t need to tell him. He already knows what I’m going to say and he doesn’t want to hear it, he literally said that to me. The message is clear.” 

“ _ Tell him,” _ she repeated through gritted teeth. “I don’t think he does know.”

“Why do you even care?” he said accusingly.

“Because you’re my friend and you’re miserable without him. And because Albus is a bloody idiot who thinks he’s doing the right thing and you at least have a bit more sense in you.” 

Tears were coming before he could stop them and for the second time that day, he broke down crying and was pulled into a hug by someone who wasn’t Albus. Thea patted his back soothingly. He couldn't let go completely, Albus was the only person he could do that with, but his exhaustion coupled with his emotions were enough to bring him to this. 

“Have I lost him?” he whispered through tears. 

“You haven’t lost him.” She pulled away from his arms and held his shoulders gently, speaking very calmly and seriously. “You haven’t lost him and you  _ can  _ fix this. Think rationally, Scorpius. He likes you, and you know it. He’s not handling it well because he likes you. He’s as scared as you are.”

Scorpius processed these words with some difficulty. He was indeed scared, terrified actually, of telling Albus how he felt in case he lost his best friend. What if Albus was in the same position, both of them too stubborn to take the risk and say something?

“What you said to him, at Slughorn’s Christmas party, the thing you said to him, the thing that upset him so much we had to leave, was it… was it about me? Was I the reason he was upset?” Scorpius thought that maybe the tears and the late hour might prompt Thea to share. 

Thea looked at him for a long time, staying silent. 

“Scorpius, you need to hear this from him. I think you can guess what I said to him that night that made him freak out like that and I think you know what put him in such a bad mood. You know what else happened that night.”

“Rose.” Scorpius didn't need to say anything else, they both knew what he meant. 

“Come on, Scorpius. All the pieces are there, you just have to put them together. Right now, he’s not even being a good friend to you. You have a right to know why he’s avoiding you at least.”

Her words made Scorpius feel a bit angry, the first time he’d felt anger towards Albus in this whole situation. Because he  _ did _ have a right to know why Albus had just suddenly blocked him out. Even if it was for the worst possible reason, even if it would be difficult to hear, at least he could make peace with it. But what if it was because Albus was too scared to admit how he felt? Was that stupid to even dare hope that all Scorpius needed to do was be brave? 

He swallowed hard. “Okay, tomorrow.”

“That’s my prefect partner,” she said, shaking his shoulder gently. “You should go to bed.”

“No point, I won’t sleep tonight,” he said helplessly. 

Thea stared at him for a second in thought. Then in one motion, she pulled a piece of parchment towards herself and grinned at him.

“I’ll stay up with you then. Teach me how to make a swan too.” 

“You don’t have to, Thea.”

“Hey! I want to. You need a friend and I need a million paper swans.” She nudged him in the elbow and he smiled gratefully.

“Alright then. So start by folding it in half lengthways…”

* * *

 

He was sleep-deprived and emotional and really just done in every possible sense of the word. There was a dull ache in the back of his neck where he’d fallen asleep at the table in the common room and weak beams of sunlight were starting to stream in through the owl window. He lifted his head from what he now saw was a transfigured pillow and there was a piece of parchment with writing on it amongst the several dozen origami swans.

_ Whatever happens, I’m here for you, Scorpius. You can do this, _

_ Love, Thea xx _

She was right, he  _ could  _ do this. It had gone on long enough and he was about to put an end to it, one way or the other. 

He moved with a renewed energy, considering his lack of sleep, and was almost in a frenzy by the time he clattered into the dormitory, clocked Albus’ empty bed, and pulled his cloak and scarf on. Wherever he was, Scorpius would find him and have this out once and for all.

The grounds were gloomy and the grass covered in morning dew, reflecting the weak sunlight from all angles and making the whole place shimmer. There was nobody around, but Scorpius knew where to look. The trail around the lake was home to just one solitary figure, running along steadily. He took one look at Scorpius and sped up, sprinting away from him. The sight was so hurtful Scorpius felt even firmer in his resolve and he ran after his best friend, waiting until he was within shouting distance. 

“Albus! Stop, just for a second, please.” The desperate tone he spoke in must have resonated with his best friend because he slowed to a halt and pulled his earphones out. They floated absurdly in the air and he batted them away in annoyance so they zoomed into his pocket instead, chattering madly. 

“What is it?” he said agitatedly, as if he couldn’t wait for this conversation to be over. Scorpius felt the disappointment of the last few days bubble up inside him until he thought he might cry. This was exactly what he’d been afraid of happening; that he’d lose his best friend.

“I just… wanted to talk to you.” Scorpius trailed off lamely, his previous confidence overshadowed by his emotion at Albus’ abrupt tone. 

“Great, go on then. Is everything okay?” 

“No, I mean yes, it is, but-“ 

“Spit it out, Scor.” 

Scorpius’ breath caught in his throat and for one horrific second he thought he was having another panic attack. He choked back tears and if Albus noticed, he didn’t say anything. 

“You’ve been avoiding me.”

Albus said nothing and folded his arms. 

“I’m sorry about… before.” Scorpius wasn’t even sure what he was apologising for at this stage. Sorry for letting you hold my hand and sleep in my bed and almost kiss me? “I don’t know what’s going on with you, but I know you’re upset with me and I wish you’d just tell me why so we can move on. Just… tell me, Albus. I can handle it.” 

“You haven’t done anything wrong. It’s me who… I’m not upset with you, what made you think that?”

“Albus, you’ve barely spoken to me in days! You won’t look me in the eye, you walk to class by yourself and you keep running off out here where you know I won’t be. I think maybe we should talk about-” 

“There’s nothing we need to talk about.” 

“ _ Talking is important.  _ You’ve said that yourself! Take your own advice, Albus. How many times have you said you wish you’d just  _ talked  _ to James? Or to your dad? Or whoever? You're doing the same thing now. Instead of listening and talking about it, you're clamming up and storming out and getting angry because it's easier to ignore it.”

“I'm not angry,” Albus whispered. 

“But Albus, I don't think we  _ can _ ignore this anymore. It's gone too far and I'm tired.” 

“Nothing’s gone too far, nothing’s even happened,” Albus crossed his arms stubbornly.

Scorpius was done. He was done with what had turned into a ridiculous game between the two of them. Thea was right, they said so much to each other without saying anything at all and finally, Scorpius was listening.

_ Listen to him, Scorpius. He’s trying to tell you. _

Now, after all of this nonsense, Scorpius had finally worked out that maybe all those little signs - touches on his hand, how caring Albus was, the entire past fortnight -  _ did _ mean what he wanted them to. And Albus was too scared to do anything about it, but maybe Scorpius wasn’t. 

It was time to be brave. 

“ _ No _ , Albus. You're not listening to me. I'm tired. I'm sick and tired of hiding my feelings and pretending like it isn't absolutely  _ killing _ me inside every time you hold my hand or climb into my bed and then refuse to talk about it. What are you doing, Albus? Every time you do that, what are you doing?”

“Calming you down. In case you haven't noticed, you sort of need it at the moment. I don’t know what you’re getting at here. You asked me to help you, remember?” 

His words stung along with the casual, uninterested tone in which he threw them. Scorpius had given him an opportunity right there to confirm what he’d only dared hope, and he’d crushed it in a few sentences. But he persisted; he wasn’t going to let Albus bury this again, not when they were so close.

“You know  _ exactly  _ what I’m getting at. I didn't ask you to spend months learning the patronus charm for me. I didn't ask you to write back and forth to your cousin multiple times about me. I didn’t ask you to hold my hand or stroke my hair or any of that other stuff. I didn't ask you to calm my nightmares down by cuddling me back to sleep, Albus. What on Earth is happening here?”

“Nothing’s happened,” Albus repeated sulkily.

“ _ Nothing’s happened _ ? We’ve shared a bed for the last three weeks then Thea saw us holding hands and you haven’t spoken to me since! You can’t call this nothing! It’s already ruining our friendship, how can that be nothing?” 

“Scorpius, we were sharing a bed so you wouldn’t have nightmares.”

There was a long pause and they both stared at each other. 

Could he really have got this whole thing so very wrong?

In that second, Scorpius knew he’d lost any and all hope of ever getting his best friend back. Their friendship was damaged beyond repair by what he’d said and what he’d done and there was only one way forward now. 

“Then… why have we stopped?” 

Albus started to zip and unzip the top of his hoodie, his fingers moving in a steady rhythm. Scorpius couldn't help but glare at him a little bit. He moved closer and took hold of each of Albus’ hands, stopping the irritating sound and lowering them so they were held firmly between the two of them. Albus looked concerned as he watched their linked hands, then his gaze moved up when he felt Scorpius lean in. 

Scorpius brushed his lips gently against Albus’, who was frozen in shock. He pressed them against him with more pressure, making it unmistakably a kiss. He’d never kissed anyone before to know how it was meant to feel, but he knew enough to be able to tell that Albus wasn’t kissing him back. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Until Friday... 
> 
>  
> 
> (❤️to Beks and Marina for beta-ing  
> tumblr is littlerose13writes if you want to yell at me)


	25. Barely A Crush

Albus wasn’t kissing him back.

Scorpius pulled away fearfully, Albus’ eyes were wide with shock and he stood rooted to the spot. Scorpius physically felt his heart break into a million pieces and he dropped Albus’ hands as if they were burning hot, turning away and willing himself not to cry until he was on his own. It was stupid to be upset over something he never had, even if it had seemed within reach for a few glorious moments.

He felt a tug on his elbow and Albus pulled him back so they were facing. His eyes were hard and determined and, for one scary second, he thought Albus was going to shout at him.

Instead, he crashed his lips against Scorpius’ and it was all he could do not to squeal in shock. Albus’ lips started to move beneath his, applying their own pressure, kissing him back.

Albus was kissing him. He was _kissing Albus._

They kissed for several minutes, by which point, Scorpius’ arms were wrapped around Albus, one hand at the back of his head and the other at the small of his back. Albus’ own hands were at Scorpius’ waist and tangled in his hair.

It was even better than anything Scorpius had ever imagined, and he’d pictured kissing Albus more times than he could count. His lips were firm but soft beneath his and he varied the pressure he was applying as they changed angles and carried on kissing. They moved slowly and tenderly, both of them unsure, moving into different positions and pressing closer together each time. If Scorpius didn’t know better, he would think Albus had an awful lot of experience in the kissing department, he was so good at it. Although maybe that was just because he was _Albus._

The feel of his soft, fluffy hair in between Scorpius’ fingers was everything he’d hoped it would be, and the familiarity of Albus’ torso pressed against his from their frequent nights in each other’s bed made Scorpius feel lightheaded with happiness. He never wanted this moment to end, because who knew what would happen when it did.

Eventually they broke apart, staying wrapped up with each other. Albus smiled nervously at him, blushing adorably. “So… that just happened.”

“It… it did. Happen, I mean.” Scorpius was breathless, barely able to articulate himself.

“I think I’d like it to happen again,” Albus said softly.

“Coming right up,” Scorpius said cheerfully then pulled a face at his own stupidity. Albus groaned fondly and pulled him in again, kissing him gently.

They broke apart and Albus smiled up at him. “Do we do this now?”

“I’d like us to, in this new version I had of us in my head.” Scorpius fiddled with the ends of his striped scarf.

“Tell me about this new version.” Albus linked their hands and started to walk away from the castle. “Because, I had something in mind too.”

“You tell me yours first,” Scorpius blushed.

“I don’t want to,” Albus mumbled, looking down over his shoulder, then he suddenly snapped his gaze back up, looking Scorpius dead in the eye. “You kissed me.”

“Um, yes. And then you kissed me.”

“But you kissed me first.” He was beaming, almost disconcertingly so. “So, you… I like you, Scorpius. Not just as a best friend. I _like_ you. And if you don’t feel the same way, I’m sorry, and I’ll get over it and we can-“

“Albus, stop rambling.” He stopped them, took Albus’ other hand too and gave them both a squeeze. “If you think there’s a chance I don’t feel the same way after that kiss, then maybe your expectations are too high.”

Albus smiled weakly. “Sorry, I’d sort of been practicing saying it like that. So… you do?”

“I’ve liked you as more than a friend for longer than I’m willing to admit.”

The way Albus’ green eyes lit up at his words made Scorpius instinctively lean in and Albus copied his action, bringing their lips together again.

“How long?” Albus asked with a mischievous glint in his eye when he pulled away.

Scorpius made a noise of confusion.

“How long have you liked me as more than a friend? You can tell me.”

“Only if you tell me.”

“This summer, the first time I came to visit you. It sort of clicked for me then, because I’d missed you so much.”

“So… this whole year so far?”

Albus nodded shyly. “Now you go.”

“If I’m being really honest, Mum’s funeral,” Scorpius admitted then hurried to explain. “I didn’t realise at the time, not until maybe a year ago. But I did like you back then.”

“What about Rose?” Albus smirked.

“Barely a crush compared to you,” Scorpius admitted and he didn’t miss the poorly concealed grin spreading over Albus’ face as he buried it into his own shoulder.

“Well that’s convenient, we both like each other.”

“It’s felt very inconvenient this year, liking you.” Scorpius noticed a nearby tree stump and walked away from Albus to sit down on it. “You’re my best friend.”

“Believe me, I know the feeling.” Albus joined him on the tree stump. “I don’t… I would never want to lose what we have.”

“Me neither,” Scorpius shook his head firmly.

“This doesn’t mean we will, does it?” Albus asked fearfully.

“No! At least, I don’t think so? You’ll always be my best friend.”

“Maybe we can be best friends who also like each other?”

“And who also kiss each other?” Scorpius added hopefully.

Albus smiled and leant forwards, connecting their lips again. It was just as wonderful as before and Scorpius wondered how he seemed to know what to do, having never kissed anyone else before.

“I like that,” Albus whispered as he drew back.

“Explain to me one thing,” Scorpius began.

“Go on.”

“What has this week been about? In fact, no, let’s go back further. What have the last three weeks been about?”

Albus looked temporarily affronted. “I could ask you the same question!”

“But I’m asking,” Scorpius grinned. “Because, Albus, I may have kissed you, but _you_ started this.”

“In what way did I start this?”

“You stayed in my bed, after I had that nightmare. You got into bed with me, and I fell asleep, but so did you and I woke up and you were still there. I thought about it all day.”  

Albus looked sheepish. “It felt like the right thing to do, you were so upset. And I… I wanted to. I thought I’d blown the whole thing the next morning when you seemed so angry with me.”

“I wasn’t angry with you.”

“It seemed like you were, and I thought _well, he clearly didn’t like that, Albus_ and I thought that would be it.” A wave of realisation passed over his face. “So actually _you_ started it.”

“What? How?”

“The next day! I thought you were having another nightmare and you _so weren’t_ but you asked me to stay anyway. That was all you!” Albus looked triumphant.

“Yeah, but then you held my hand!” Scorpius protested.

“Because you told me you weren’t really having a nightmare.”

Scorpius furrowed his brow. “Maybe I _did_ start this. Take that, Malfoy the Platonic,” he muttered under his breath.

“Did you just say _Mal-_ “

“No, definitely not,” Scorpius said hurriedly as Albus grinned at him. “So maybe I did start it, but you didn’t exactly stop it either.”

“I was enjoying it too much.” He sighed and started to pick at the tree stump.

“Why did you never want to talk about it? You wouldn’t even entertain the idea.”

“I thought, maybe it didn’t mean as much to you as it did to me. I was scared that if we talked about it, you’d tell me I was mad and that would be the end of our friendship. I knew I wanted more, but I wasn’t willing to lose you as a friend if you didn’t feel the same way.”

“Albus, you’ve just summarised exactly how I’ve felt for basically this whole year.”

“Really?”

Scorpius nodded. “So I started it, but I thought you’d started it, meanwhile you thought I’d started it. Do we have my stupid nightmares to thank for this all coming out?”

“I suppose, sort of? I told myself that this would be the year I did something about my feelings for you, but I was overthinking it too much. Teddy actually was the one who gave me a push. While you were on your date with Rose, he was cutting my hair and I told him I liked you. To be honest, he wasn’t that surprised, but Teddy’s always been quite perceptive and we’re close.”

Scorpius buried his face in his hands. “So when I turned up to walk back with you, and he was asking me about my date with Rose, he knew you liked me?”

Albus nodded. “Sorry. I needed to tell someone.”

“But you asked out Thea,” Scorpius suddenly remembered.

“Ah.” Albus looked momentarily uncomfortable. “Yes, I did do that, because you asked Rose out. But she, er, thought we were… together. I asked her to Hogsmeade, and she was confused why I was asking her out because she thought me and you were a thing. I wasn’t exactly ready to talk about it.”

“That’s why you were so angry when we left,” Scorpius filled in and Albus nodded.

“That and the fact you had just organised a date with my cousin. I still think she was up to something.”

“She was!” Scorpius remembered he hadn’t told Albus. “She told me the other day it was all part of some plan but she wouldn’t say anymore.”

Albus looked pensive. “I’ll get it out of her.”

“What do we do now then?” Scorpius asked vaguely.

“I have an idea,” Albus quirked one eyebrow.

“I mean, what do we _do_?” He pointed back and forth between the two of them.

Albus pulled a face. “I really don’t want to go through some kind of cringey announcement. Can’t we just carry on with how things were going?”

“Except with talking now, _please.”_

“Fine, if you insist.” Albus rolled his eyes but smiled widely. “No announcement, no making a big deal out of telling anyone, just do what feels right. My siblings know I’m gay and my parents won’t care at all, in fact I always got the feeling Mum already knows.”

Scorpius hesitated. “Albus, how did you know?”

“How did I know what?”

“How did you know you were gay? Because I don’t know what to think about myself.” Albus’ eyes had widened and Scorpius hurriedly backtracked. “I know I like you, a lot, but that’s about the only thing I’m sure about. Does that mean I’m gay?”

“I can’t tell you that, Scor. It’s sort of a personal thing. But I can tell you that you don’t have to have an answer right now, or even ever.”

“I don’t?”

Albus shook his head. “Nope. That’s what Teddy said.”

“Good to know,” Scorpius muttered and looked out over the lake. Albus rested his head on his shoulder, their difference in height meaning he fitted perfectly. Scorpius hesitated for a second and then wrapped his arm around Albus’ shoulders.

“We’re due in Herbology,” Albus said, not moving an inch. “But I don’t want to move.”

“We’re at least fifteen minutes away from the greenhouses, we’ll be late anyway even if we leave now. And you’re not even in your uniform yet.”

Albus lifted his head from Scorpius’ shoulder and stared at him in disbelief. “Are you suggesting we skip class?”

“No, you were!”

“What do you think, Perfect Prefect Scorpius?” Albus replaced his head.

“I think we have a lot of important talking to do. Maybe more important than Herbology.” He squeezed the top of Albus’ shoulder and he sighed into Scorpius’ neck.

“I’m sorry about this week,” he breathed. “I panicked. Thea was just so… _loud_ and you looked so horrified. I thought you would be embarrassed that Thea saw me holding your hand and I just couldn’t hear that from you.”

“Albus.” Scorpius looked down at him fondly. “I could never be embarrassed by you.” Albus’ lips spread into a smile and he raised his head again. “Anyway, I was holding your hand too. Why did you think I was doing that if I didn’t want to?”

“Thought you were just going along with it all because you felt sorry for me, that one day you’d turn around and gently tell me you didn’t want to share a bed with me anymore, or any of the other stuff, and that we couldn’t be friends anymore.”

Scorpius gaped at him incredulously. “That’s what you thought?”

Albus shrugged. “You know me, I tend to go straight to the worst case scenario. Like I said, I panicked.”

“I’d _never_ say we couldn’t be friends anymore. This week has been awful without you around. I never want to go back to being like that again. Promise me we won’t?”

Scorpius tried to sound lighthearted but there was a very real fear underneath his words. What if something went wrong and they couldn’t even be friends anymore? He knew Albus was thinking the same thing because he sighed heavily and took Scorpius’ hands.

“This is a risk, it was always going to be, but tell me honestly, could you go back to just being friends now? Because I don’t think I could.”

Scorpius pictured it: sleeping by himself and then not seeing Albus until breakfast, walking side by side and not holding hands, sitting beside him in the library doing homework and knowing what it felt like to kiss him.

“I don’t think I could either.” He kissed Albus again.

Albus was right, he thought as they kissed, this was a risk, but one he’d only be willing to take with Albus by his side.

“You always have brought out the more reckless side of me,” he said and Albus beamed adorably.

* * *

 

Scorpius couldn’t keep the grin off his face during Charms. He was too happy to even be worried about missing Herbology, not that anyone seemed to have noticed, apart from Thea.

She was the only person stood outside the Charms classroom with her arms folded, tapping her foot impatiently. As Scorpius and Albus approached, she raised her eyebrows and smirked.

“Look at you two, arriving to Charms together,” she said in a sing-song voice.

“Yep,” Albus replied defiantly.

“Happy for you both,” she muttered, turning and heading into the classroom with a smile.

Albus and Scorpius exchanged looks. “How did she know?”

Scorpius frowned. “I suppose because we haven’t spoken all week and now we’re.. speaking again.”

“We could have just made friends again?” Albus looked almost hurt that Thea had figured them out already.

“She thought we were together when we really _were_ just friends,” Scorpius reminded him and Albus shrugged.

“Fair point. Charms?”

Scorpius paid little attention to anything in Charms because he and Albus kept catching each other’s eye and grinning uncontrollably. He felt blissfully happy that he not only had his best friend back, but that the one thing he had only ever dreamed of was actually happening. He continued to replay Albus’ words from that morning over and over again in his head.

_I like you, Scorpius. Not just as a best friend. I like you._

Amidst the chaos of their revision lesson on summoning and banishing charms, Thea deposited a note on their desk with a wink, under the pretence of practicing a banishing charm on it. Scorpius shared a look with Albus, who unfolded the note and placed it flat on the table between them.

_When are you telling people? I might burst I’m so excited! T x_

Albus rolled his eyes so hard he had to pinch the bridge of his nose in pain. He grabbed his quill and quickly scribbled at the bottom of the parchment, showing it to Scorpius before he sent it back to Thea.

_When they ask? There won’t be any ‘telling people’!_

_A + S x_

_PS don’t burst, that sounds messy_

Scorpius chuckled at the note and watched it meet its mark. Thea opened it, read it, grinned slyly and caught Albus’ eye. He stuck his chin out defiantly at her and folded his arms but he couldn’t help a small smile taking over his expression. Thea nodded and turned away from them with a smirk, whispering something into Imogen’s ear, who looked gleeful.

“What have you just started, Al?” Scorpius shook his head and summoned the bottle he was practicing with.

They didn’t find out until after Charms and at break. Cole was talking to them both about how attractive he thought the new Potions professor was and Albus looked faintly bored, as if he’d heard this all before (which he probably had). Just as he began to openly fantasise a scenario involving Professor Jacobs dropping her wand, they were joined by Thea, Imogen and Ava.

All three girls were smirking and Imogen (who now had pink tips to her long hair) made a beeline straight for Albus. Thea and Ava were giggling as Imogen reached out and pulled a bewildered Albus into a hug.

“Hi, Al,” she said, batting her eyelashes. “How are you doing?” She didn’t wait for him to reply. “Anyway, want to come to Hogsmeade with me some time? I’ve liked you for a while.”

Scorpius accidentally squeaked and Albus scowled over at Thea. “You’re an idiot,” he said in annoyance.

“Oh! Are you already going with someone?” Imogen pretended to sound disappointed.

“So, Immy, are you now asking Albus his current relationship status?” Thea put her arm around her friend and grinned at Albus. Imogen nodded. “Look at that, Al. Imogen is _asking_ you. She just _asked_.”

“Hilarious.” Albus sighed and the three girls laughed.

“Sorry, Al,” said Imogen apologetically. “It’s just, we sort of all guessed.”

“Somebody’s going to need to fill me in here.” Cole looked confusedly between them all. “What did you guess?”

Thea whispered in his ear and his expression cleared. “Oh _that!_ Of course I knew that. Hard not to when you share a dorm.” He shrugged.

Scorpius laughed uncomfortably and Albus’ ears turned red.

“We’re really happy for you,” Ava said cheerfully.

“Um, thanks?” Scorpius responded uncertainly.

The bell rang for the end of break and as they made their way to double Transfiguration, Cole lowered his voice. “Just, keep the PDA to a minimum in the dorm, okay?”

“Of course, Cole. I know you don’t like Scorpius seeing us kiss,” Albus teased and bumped his shoulder into Cole’s side, who roared with laughter.  


* * *

 

The fifth year Slytherins spilled out of Transfiguration and Albus tugged on Scorpius’ elbow. “I need to get my… homework. Want to come with me?”

“We have homework due? I haven’t done it! How did I miss that? Was it after-“

“Scorpius,” Albus cut him off. “Just come with me.”

The dormitory was empty, as it always was at lunchtime. Albus closed the door and looked around, as if he were checking there really was nobody there. He took Scorpius’ hands and leaned in, kissing him gently.

“Ah,” Scorpius smiled. “Homework.”

“Is this okay?” Albus sounded nervous.

“It’s definitely okay.”

“Good, because I’ve wanted to do that again all morning.” He lead Scorpius over to his bed and sat down, pulling Scorpius down beside him. “Do you think they’ll notice?” He gestured around, meaning their roommates. “I mean, I know Cole has but the others?”

“I think they already have noticed,” Scorpius confessed and Albus raised his eyebrows. “Pucey said something, the other week. He said _we don’t mind_ or something.”

“How did he know?” Albus looked completely flabbergasted.

“Albus, I don’t think we were being as subtle as you thought we were.”

Albus shrugged and turned so he was facing Scorpius, taking both his hands and smiling sweetly. “I really am sorry for how badly I handled this all.”

“Come on, I hardly did a very good job either. I’m sorry too.” He rubbed the backs of Albus’ hands with his thumbs.

“I’m more sorry for being so stupid and immature.”

Scorpius shook his head. “Stop apologising and let’s get back to that homework.”

Albus’ face lit up with a grin and Scorpius revelled in being able to give in to the familiar urge to bring Albus close to him and press their lips together. They kissed until they absolutely had to tear themselves away from each other and go and eat lunch. (Hungry Albus was _not_ something Scorpius was willing to deal with that afternoon.)

As they were crossing the quiet common room, Albus reached over and took Scorpius’ hand, asking for permission with a look. Scorpius smiled and squeezed it in response. Even though they only passed a handful of random people on their way to the Great Hall - none of whom even seemed to notice they were holding hands - it felt so different to not be acting like they had to keep it a secret.

They’d been open with each other at long last and Scorpius couldn’t be happier.

The Hogwarts rumour mill worked quickly and for the first time accurately, but Scorpius found it was hard to care that people were talking about him for something which made him so happy, and nobody had said or done anything unkind. He had thought maybe people would tease them or make cruel jokes again about him being the son of Voldemort and Albus being the son of the Boy Who Lived. It seemed like the sort of thing Polly Chapman would find funny, but as it turned out, nobody was overly interested in the fact that they were together now.

“I think a lot of people thought you already were a couple,” Thea shrugged when they spoke to her about it that evening.

“You did,” Albus laughed.

“Can you blame me?” Thea nodded at their casually joined hands and Albus made a noise of protest.

“Hey! We didn’t do this before! Scor, tell her.”

“Thea, we didn’t do this before.” Scorpius turned to Albus. “Albus, she’s still absolutely right.”

Albus pouted and unlinked their hands before immediately looking apologetic and picking Scorpius’ hand up again, kissing it once quickly and letting it fall joined to his.

Thea stood up and started taking steps towards the door. “As adorable as this all is, I’m going to have to love you and leave you.”

“Starting to feel like a third wheel?” Albus joked.

Thea looked away for a second and when she looked back, Scorpius noticed a slight smirk on her face. “No, actually I have a date,” she said quietly.

Albus gasped and dropped Scorpius’ hand again, getting up from where they were sitting and rushing over to Thea. “Who with?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Thea said with a note of finality. “Just someone.”

“Do I know him? Is he in Slytherin?”

“It. Doesn’t. Matter.” Thea repeated with a little smile. “I’m going to be late.”

“Late for your _date_ ,” Albus said in a sing song voice.

“Oh just because you’re all happily loved up now,” Thea sighed and ruffled Albus’ hair fondly before wiggling her fingers at them both. “Bye, boys!”

“Be safe!” Albus called after her and he headed back over to Scorpius with a huge grin on his face.

“Who do you think she’s going out with?” Scorpius was just as curious as Albus was but better at recognising that Thea wasn’t going to tell them.

Albus thought for a moment. “I bet it’s that guy from the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, the one she sits next to in Defence.” He looked pleased with himself then his face changed. “No! I bet it’s that bloke in the year above. Or maybe it’s Jeremy Boot!”

“Or maybe she’ll tell us when she’s ready,” Scorpius finished for him.

Albus hummed quietly under his breath. “We should go on a date.”

Scorpius felt himself blush. “I’d like that.”

“I’ve never been on a date before,” Albus said shyly.

“Technically I’ve been on _one_ ,” Scorpius began.

“With Rose,” Albus interjected.

“But I don’t think we have to go to Hogsmeade for it to be a date. Anything can be a date.”

“Is this a date right now then?” Albus said dryly, gesturing to the common room armchair they were sharing. “I want to take you on a proper date and I’m sure I can come up with something better for our first date.”

“Albus, you don’t have to-”

His eyes lit up. “I’ve got it! It’s brilliant, and it’s something we can do right now.”

“We’re going on our first date right now?” Scorpius eyed him uncertainly. “Is our first date going to involve breaking school rules?”

“No! Let’s go flying.” Albus jumped up and pulled Scorpius by the hand. He had boundless energy today. “Quidditch will be over by now, Ravenclaw always finish early. I know we’ve been flying together before, but this would be… is this a stupid idea? Please say if you don’t want to go.”

Scorpius smiled at the thought and wrapped his arm around Albus’ shoulders. “Sounds perfect.”

Albus looked triumphant and Scorpius narrowed his eyes.

“Hold on, you’re not thinking of trying to spy on Thea and find out who her date is, are you?”

“Hadn’t even crossed my mind,” Albus said innocently. “It has now though.”

“Albus, we can’t!” Scorpius couldn’t stop grinning as Albus gently pulled him along to collect their brooms.

“I know, I know, I’m only joking.”

* * *

 

They’d only taken a few steps outside of the castle, each with a broom balanced on their shoulders, their hands linked, when they bumped into Lily coming back inside with a rolled up yoga mat under her arm, muttering to herself. She almost didn’t notice them, and it looked like she was going to march right past them until Albus called her name.

“Lil? Is everything okay?”

She shifted her yoga mat and sighed. “I’ve just been very stressed this week, and I came out here to try to find some space but it’s freezing and my warming charms are rubbish and it’s just making me _more_ stressed and I’m annoyed I can’t do them properly and I just want to practise yoga but I didn’t get to finish _.”_ She spoke dramatically and all in one breath.

Albus cast a quick sideways glance at Scorpius and let go of his hand, passing his broomstick over and gesturing for Scorpius to hold it. He pulled Lily into a hug which she softened into instantly, wrapping her arms around him and sighing against his shoulder.

“What are you so stressed about? Can I help?”

“My potions test on Friday,” Lily complained, letting Albus release her. She sniffed. “Thanks, apparently I needed an Al hug.”

Albus smiled at his feet. “What’s the test on?”

“We have to make a Babbling Brew from memory with no instructions or help or anything.”

Albus looked confused. “You’ve got a phenomenal memory, Lils. Why are you worried?”

“I just _am_. What if I mess it up? Can I have another hug?”

“Of course.” He opened his arms out and she fell into them again, this time catching Scorpius’ eye as she did. “Oh! You two made friends again!”

Scorpius grinned sheepishly. “Indeed, all sorted.”

Lily suddenly shifted and pulled Scorpius into the hug too so he and Albus were both squashed together, their broomsticks digging uncomfortably into his side. “I’m so happy, this is the best news!”

Scorpius wasn’t sure if Lily was just referring to them making up or if she’d heard what had happened that morning. The sly look in her eyes made Scorpius think it was probably the latter.

“Thanks, Lil,” Albus said, his voice slightly muffled by Scorpius’ shoulder. “Can we breathe now?”

Lily released them and smiled, her eyes shining. “I love this, I really love it.”

“Er, thanks. Do you want me to have a go at a warming charm? Or maybe Scor could?” Albus leaned over to take his hand again and Lily smiled triumphantly.

“Yes please. What are you two doing out here anyway?”

Albus reclaimed his broomstick and waved it at Lily. “Just doing some History of Magic homework. What does it look like?”

“What I _meant_ was, is it just the two of you or are you going to play Quidditch?” She stuck her yoga mat between her knees and tightened her ponytail.

“Just us two.” Scorpius answered for them both. “How about that warming charm now?”

Lily stood still and closed her eyes while he put his best attempt at the charm on her and she thanked him and started to skip off back in the direction she’d come.

“Can I tell Mum, Al?” she called as she left.

“No!” Albus replied indignantly. “It’s my news.”

“Fine,” Lily rolled her eyes and hurried away, her ponytail swinging behind her.

“That was weird, Lily never stresses about school stuff,” Albus mused as they walked on. “I wonder what it is about that potions test.”

“You’re a good brother, did you know that? She really looks up to you, she clearly loves you so much.”

He knew Albus would go red and get embarrassed and try to downplay his relationship with Lily, probably citing James and how he was better at that sort of thing. So he was quite surprised when, instead, Albus looked at him sincerely.

“Thanks, Scor. I like that you notice stuff like that.”

Scorpius needed to get somewhere private soon so he could kiss Albus like he wanted to right now.

There was nobody out on the Quidditch pitch; the Ravenclaw team had obviously finished their practice. Albus went to mount his broom and turned to look at Scorpius.

“How long’s it been since we flew together?”

Scorpius mounted his own broom and thought for a second. “Not since the summer, I don’t think.”

Albus flashed Scorpius a grin and kicked off the ground. “See you up there!”

He went shooting upwards faster than Scorpius’ gaze could keep up with and it was then that he realised how much he enjoyed flying and how much he missed doing it. He kicked off the ground too, gently guiding his broom towards Albus, who was waiting for him several feet up.

It was dusk, the light dwindling and the full moon shining clearly in the distance. Despite the chilly air, Scorpius felt exhilarated to be hurtling through the air. As the wind sped past and rushed through his hair, he thought about everything that had happened that day; the things he’d only dreamed of happening before.

He slowed down and his gaze fell on Albus, who looked equally thrilled to be in the air. His dark hair whipped around his face in the wind and he guided his broom with expert precision, his Quidditch training obvious in his motions. The muscles in his arms visibly tightened under the sleeves of his hoodie as he steered his broom back towards Scorpius. They both slowed their brooms down, hovering beside each other. Albus pushed his hair back from his eyes and smiled at Scorpius. He held a hand out and Scorpius took it immediately.

“Hold on tight,” Albus said, waiting only a second for Scorpius to comprehend his words before he whizzed off, dragging Scorpius and his broom along with him.

They rushed through the night air together, further and higher than ever before, until the Quidditch pitch was a distance away and they were circling the tops of the trees on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Their hands stayed joined together and it occurred to Scorpius that they’d spent most of that day holding hands. He squeezed Albus’ hand and he turned to look at Scorpius, slowing his broom down until they were gently floating along, just skimming the tops of the tallest trees.

Without realising it, Scorpius had started to lean in and Albus mirrored him, pressing their lips together. As they moved closer together, they dropped hands and Albus wrapped a strong arm around Scorpius’ waist, holding them both steadily together. Scorpius found his hand pressed up against Albus’ chest, the feel of his heartbeat thumping against his fingertips as his lips worked swiftly against Scorpius’.

Albus attempted to pull him closer still and Scorpius felt himself tip forwards. He quickly grabbed onto the handle of his broom with both hands, bringing their kiss to an abrupt end and sending both of them into peals of laughter.

“Imagine trying to explain to Madam Pomfrey how you fell off your broom,” Albus laughed, taking his hand again and flying back in the opposite direction.

They went the long way back to the Quidditch pitch, Scorpius casting a _lumos_ as darkness descended. They were about to be out of bounds, but neither of them were particularly rushing to get back inside as they touched down on the pitch black Quidditch pitch and Albus immediately discarded his broom, wrapping an arm around Scorpius’ shoulders and pulling him into another kiss.

Albus’ hand worked its way furiously up to the back of Scorpius’ head and he roughly ran his fingers through Scorpius’ hair. The back of his scalp tingled as the pressure against Scorpius’ lips changed. He realised what Albus was trying to do and obliged, parting his lips just enough so Albus could slip his tongue inside.

Scorpius had always wondered why it was that anybody would enjoy the feeling of somebody else’s tongue in their mouth, and had vehemently decided he would never want to do that with anyone.

That decision quickly went out of the window that night, as Albus somehow managed to deepen their kiss further. Scorpius’ hands wandered to Albus’ hair, sifting it through his fingers. It was tangled and windswept from their fly and his fingers got stuck in a particularly stubborn knot.

“Ow!” Albus pulled away, his hand flying to the back of his head where Scorpius’ finger was still wrapped up in his hair.

“Sorry,” Scorpius whispered, attempting to detach his finger as Albus did the same thing, reaching blindly behind him and probably making it worse. “Let me, take your hand away.”

Albus obliged and Scorpius gently separated the knot of hair, his fingers coming away with a small leaf in them, the cause of the knot.

“A gift,” he said, presenting the leaf to Albus with a flourish. “As this is our first date.”

“And I didn’t get you anything!” Albus jokingly took the leaf and clutched it to his chest. “Thanks, sorry about my hair. I’ll brush it when we get in, promise.”

Scorpius swallowed, thinking of Slughorn’s Christmas party and hoping this wouldn’t be a weird suggestion. “Albus, can I brush it for you?”

Albus seemed to be on his wavelength because he took his hand and nodded. “Yeah, alright then.”

They strolled back to the castle hand in hand, stopping every few paces to lean over and kiss again. Scorpius had lost count of how many times they’d kissed now, but he knew there would be many more kisses and he was so ready for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you forgive me? :)  
> Thanks to Beks (morphin3) and Marina (per-mare-ad-astra) for always being so amazing and supportive, also all the love to Cherry (cherrydore) and Mari (marisdrawings) for the beautiful fanart of the last chapter, check them out on tumblr!  
> Mine is littlerose13writes :)  
> All the love! Have a wonderful weekend everyone❤️


	26. Protective Brother Mode

Sharing his bed with Albus again that night was the most blissful feeling and Scorpius lay awake for a while, just feeling Albus’ heartbeat thump against his torso. He scanned his eyes all over Albus’ form, taking in every detail he knew so well. His tangled dark hair which had only been made messier by Scorpius running his hands through it as they kissed, his freckled shoulders which fitted against Scorpius so well, the striped pyjama bottoms he wore and the way his legs were tangled up in Scorpius’ under the duvet. It was perfect.

Scorpius leaned forward and kissed the top of Albus’ sleeping head, immediately taken aback when he moved and grinned up at Scorpius, rolling over onto his side.

“I thought you were asleep,” Scorpius whispered.

“I thought _you_ were asleep.”

They both sniggered quietly. “I will be soon, I’m just so happy. This might be my favourite day ever.” Scorpius sighed dreamily.

“I’m happy too.” Albus smiled. “Who knew talking about your feelings could be such a good idea?”

Scorpius laughed. “Most people know that.” He hesitated. “Can I ask you something? So, all of our friends know we’re together now,” he said tentatively, testing the waters.

Albus nodded. “They know we’re together.”

“Does that mean… am I your boyfriend?” Scorpius smiled involuntarily at the word, at the idea of being _Albus’ boyfriend._

“If you’d like to be,” Albus said with a crooked grin.

“Yes, I would like to be your boyfriend.” Scorpius started to stroke his hair, holding Albus close to him. “I’d like that very much. Best friend and boyfriend, it has a nice ring to it.”

“Or we act like James and _don’t do labels_ ,” Albus said in an uncanny impression of his brother before quickly continuing in his normal voice. “Which sounds awful. I want to be your best friend and boyfriend too.”

“We’re _boyfriends_ ,” Scorpius breathed into his hair, not caring how stupid he sounded to be making such a big deal over a word. “ _Boyfriends,_ Albus.”

Albus chuckled into his chest. “Do you think we should, like, write to our parents and tell them? Is that a thing people do?”

Scorpius imagined dropping his dad a quick owl to let him know his best friend was now also his boyfriend. They’d never talked about having crushes or relationships or anything, not since Scorpius was eleven and his dad had awkwardly handed him a book and told him to read it and come to him if he had any questions.

He wasn’t worried, he knew his dad liked Albus a lot. He just didn’t know how to start that sort of conversation with his father.

“I haven’t got a clue. Does James write to your parents every time he starts a new relationship?”

Albus snorted. “He’d need a couple of extra owls to keep them fully informed.”

“What about Lily?”

Albus snapped his head up and looked Scorpius dead in the eye. “What about her? Do you know something? Is she going out with someone? Who is it?”

“No, I don’t know anything,” Scorpius said hurriedly with a laugh. “I was just asking, didn’t mean to activate Protective Brother Mode.”

“Sorry.” Albus curled back into him and yawned. “I don’t think I will write to them, that seems sort of weird. Maybe I’ll drop it into my next letter, or wait until I see them next.”

“Me too,” Scorpius nodded, still trying to picture how his dad might respond.

“Scor?” Albus mumbled against his neck.

“Mmmhmm?” Scorpius said weakly, feeling his eyelids droop.

“Will you come to Quidditch tomorrow? You know, as my boyfriend?”

Scorpius’ eyes snapped open again. “What? Are you serious?”

Albus nodded, his hair tickling Scorpius’ chin. “I’d like you to.”

“Okay.” Scorpius smiled to himself.

“I’m glad you’re my boyfriend,” Albus mumbled, sounding seconds from sleep.

Scorpius smiled and closed his eyes, wondering how any dream could top this.

* * *

Scorpius sat on his gloved hands and shivered into his scarf, the cold air biting against his cheeks. He smiled shyly over at the only other occupants of the Quidditch stands - a girl he didn’t know but recognised from the year above. She smiled too and sighed.

“So, you’re a Quidditch fan too?”

Scorpius nodded and smiled sheepishly. “Er, yes. I like Quidditch.”

“Here to watch Albus?” she grinned knowingly.

Scorpius felt himself blush. “That’s the one.”

“My boyfriend’s Henrik,” the girl explained. “I was wondering when I’d see you here.”

He laughed nervously, not sure how to respond.

“Henrik says Albus has been off his game this week,” she mused conversationally and Scorpius felt his stomach drop.

“He was, um, ill last week,” Scorpius mumbled, which wasn’t exactly a lie. “But he’s better now, I think. On his game again, right on top of it, the top of his game.”

She eyed him strangely and reached into her cloak, coming back with a book which she opened on her lap. “There’s a lot of waiting around, I have NEWTs coming up,” she explained.

Scorpius hadn’t brought a book with him or any homework, even though Albus had said he wouldn’t mind if he wanted to and that he just wanted him to be there. It seemed important somehow, being there to watch Albus’ training for the first time.

The sound of voices coming from the changing rooms got louder as the team started to appear on the pitch. Henrik was first, carrying the chest containing the balls with Cole, and just behind him was Albus. He looked for Scorpius almost immediately, smiling widely when he caught his eye and raising his hand in a tiny wave. Scorpius waved back enthusiastically and Thea looked between them fondly, ruffling Albus’ hair and making him laugh.

Henrik said something to the team and they all mounted their brooms, starting to warm up by flying laps around the pitch. Scorpius watched Albus fly, feeling a pleasant squirm every time he flew past and flashed him a pleased grin. The wind rushed through his hair and his eyes shone in delight; Scorpius thought about when they’d gone flying together the night before and smiled to himself.

The team landed, stretched a bit, and took their positions to run some drills. Albus hovered in front of the hoops. He was waiting for the Chasers to get into position and he pushed his hair out of his eyes, smiling over at Scorpius.

“Potter! Stop making eyes at your boyfriend and concentrate!”

Albus jumped at Henrik’s voice and blushed, his face set and his eyes locked on the quaffle, but Scorpius could have sworn he saw him smirk to himself.

If Albus had been off his game last week, he was certainly back on it again now, because Scorpius had never seen him play so well.

* * *

As soon as their morning lessons finished on Friday, Albus insisted on going back to the dorm to do ‘homework’, a code word he seemed to be very proud of, even though it was wildly obvious to everyone what they were really doing. By the time they got to lunch, there wasn’t long left until their afternoon lessons. The Slytherin table was quiet and none of their friends were still there, so they sat just the two of them and Albus placed his hand on his knee under the table.

From the other side of the Great Hall, Albus’ brother seemed to home in on them instantly and he grinned, getting up from the Gryffindor table almost immediately. James smirked at them both and sauntered over, throwing his arm around Albus and ruffling his hair. Albus scowled and tried to pat his hair back into place.

“You look happy,” he said dreamily and turned to Scorpius with a huge wink.

“Hello, James,” Albus greeted, trying not to grin and failing spectacularly.

“So you two made up?” He invited himself to join them, squeezing in beside Albus.

“Yes,” Albus answered with the air of someone who didn’t want to talk about it.

James nodded and reached for his brother’s pumpkin juice. “Al, I need the invisibility cloak back.”

Albus frowned. “I don’t have the invisibility cloak.”

“You don’t have it?”

Albus took the juice back and shook his head. “Nope, why would I have it?”

“Well if you don’t have it, then who d-“

In unison, both Potters turned to stare at the Gryffindor table. Scorpius followed their gaze and wasn’t at all surprised to see their little sister at the end of it.

“You’ve changed your trunk combination haven’t you? It’s not still the day you got your first broom?”

James turned back to stare at him incredulously. “How did you know that?”

Albus buried his face in both hands. “Why has Lily stolen the invisibility cloak? Why has Lily stolen a unicorn? Why is our sister like this?”

“Also, she was randomly quizzing me about some potions ingredients she definitely shouldn’t be using,” Scorpius put in.

“Wait what? Which potions ingredients?” James asked urgently.

“Asphodel, gillyweed, daisies…” Scorpius trailed off at the looks on both Potters’ faces.

“No! She’s not, is she?” Albus exchanged a worried look with James.

“What exactly did my sister ask you?” James said carefully.

“Whether gillyweed would catch fire if she mixed it with daisy petals, or with powdered root of asphodel.”

“Oh shit,” Albus said under his breath.

“What? Is that bad?” Scorpius asked innocently. “It wouldn’t catch fire, would it?”

“Scorpius, do you know what gillyweed can be used for?”

“Of course. You eat it and it gives you gills so you can breathe underwater.”

“Correct, but what if you don’t _eat_ it?” Albus continued.

“Well then I’m really not sure what you’d do with-“

“What if you dry it out and smoke it so you can get higher than a Firebolt, you precious little petal?” James interrupted, sounding annoyed.

“You can _smoke_ gillyweed?” Scorpius asked incredulously.

“Yes!” Albus exclaimed. “I think it gets smoked more than it gets used for its actual purpose.”

“But… why?”

“Because it feels good,” James said simply. “People do it quite a lot actually. Teddy’s a big fan, there’s nothing wrong with it.”

“Except there is if it’s our thirteen-year-old sister, and there definitely is if she’s mixing it with stuff like asphodel.”

“Should we tell Dad?” James wondered aloud.

“He wouldn’t believe his little Lily Petal would ever do something like that.”

“Can we be sure she _is_ doing something like that? She only asked me about it as a potion ingredient.”

James patted Scorpius on the top of the head. “Mate, we grew up with her.” He turned to Albus. “Intervention?”

Albus rolled his eyes. “Fine. Scor, want to come?”

“I really think this is a family thing,” he muttered.

James shrugged and got up from the table. “Come on, Al.”

Albus looked at Scorpius as if he didn’t know how to leave. He sort of jerked his body as if he was going to kiss Scorpius on the cheek and then thought better of it. Instead, he patted the top of Scorpius’ leg under the table and smiled apologetically.

“Well?” James stared at Albus expectantly. “Give him a kiss goodbye!”

“James!” Albus blushed and glared at his brother. “Shut up.”

James looked unconcerned and winked at Scorpius. “Oh yeah, I think I’m supposed to say: Scorpius, if you hurt my brother, I’ll hex you so hard you won’t be able to feel your toes, but I think he’s safe with you.” He turned to Albus, who looked like he was considering hexing James himself. “Al, don’t be a dick to Scorpius, okay? I quite like him.”

Albus rolled his eyes and muttered something which sounded like James not being one to talk. “Come on, if we want to interrogate our little sister about taking drugs, we’d better do it now.”

James followed Albus with a grin and Scorpius watched them flank Lily from either side, which she was not at all impressed by. Something Albus said made her laugh loudly and something James said made her hit him on the back of the head. Eventually, she stood up and stormed off, shaking off both attempts to get her to come back. As she left, Scorpius noticed what was different and instantly remembered what this afternoon was.

Lily was wearing trousers. He’d forgotten in all the excitement of his morning that the girls’ dress code protest was taking place that afternoon. As he looked around the Great Hall, he saw several more girls in the alternative version of the school uniform. Each had a pleased, smug expression on their face and Scorpius was proud his friends had managed to pull this off. Just as this thought occurred to him, Albus returned and had picked up Thea and Ava on the way.

“Boys, it’s time.” They stood in front of them, holding something out in offering and smirking conspiratorially. “Put them on before afternoon lessons start.”

Scorpius nervously accepted the grey bundle Ava handed him.

“Thanks for doing this with us, guys. We really appreciate it.” Ava smiled kindly.

“Er, how many other boys are doing this?” Albus looked reluctant.

“Well, look around you now. Notice anything?”

Scorpius glanced around the Great Hall, emptying out as lunch came to an end. Albus looked with him, completely perplexed.

“Er, most of the girls are wearing trousers?” Albus offered uncertainly.

Scorpius had understood what Ava meant though. “All the boys are gone. Look, Albus, we’re basically the only boys in here.”

“Go and look in the common room,” Thea said knowingly. “And that’s just the Slytherin lot. Most of Gryffindor agreed to it thanks to your brother, Al. And loads of Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws are doing it too.”

“We’re gonna make history!” Ava said happily, skipping off.

“I didn’t see James in a skirt,” Albus said dubiously, watching her leave.

“Is that why Lily took the invisibility cloak? Because of the dress code protest?” Scorpius asked as he and Albus made their way to the common room with the skirts.

“She denied taking the cloak, but she’s a very good liar so you can never tell with her. She once told Dad I took her pygmy puff and dropped it in ink when actually she had tried to dye it blue with Teddy’s wand. I had to help her give Fluffles a bath until he went back to his normal colour, which didn’t work because it _wasn’t_ ink.”

“Clearly you’re completely over that injustice,” Scorpius said dryly. “What about the gillyweed?”

“Well, James went in all guns blazing and started this big spiel about how we all loved her very much and supported her decisions but that she shouldn’t be turning to drugs at her age. You know, like a total Gryffindor with absolutely no tact at all.”

Scorpius snorted. “How did she take that?”

“Not well. She told James to stop interfering in her business, and that he was mad, but she didn’t actually outright deny it.” Albus chewed his lip in concern. “I might write to Mum, she’s Lily and she’s fearless but, you know, she’s my little sister and she’s _Lily_.”

Despite his lack of words, Scorpius _did_ know what Albus meant. He’d grown exceptionally fond of Lily over the last few months and almost shared Albus’ protectiveness over her.

“Your mum will know what to do,” Scorpius mused as they made their way down into the dungeons.

The common room was usually quite empty during lunch, but today it was filled with predominantly boys, most of whom were switching between laughter and looking a bit sheepish. Cole came barrelling over, his muscly legs protruding from a grey skirt.

“These are so comfortable!” He greeted cheerfully, giving them a twirl in his Hogwarts school skirt. “I don’t know what the girls are complaining about, I’d love to wear this every day!” He snorted with laughter.

“Are you really sure about this?” Albus looked anxious.

Scorpius took his shoulders and turned him to look around the common room. “Look. We’ll stand out more if we _don’t_ do it too.”

Albus’ eyes scanned the room; nearly every boy from third year upwards was in a skirt. Scorpius thought privately that a lot of them had likely only agreed to it because it was Thea asking, but even so it was still the vast majority of their house supporting the protest.

“Come on then.” Albus took his hand and pulled him towards the dormitory.

They were the only ones in there, but Cole has convinced Higgs and Pucey to do it too; Scorpius had seen them in the common room. There was an awkward sort of silence while they both changed into the skirts which Albus broke with a snort of laughter.

“It’s not really that different to dress robes when you think about it,” Albus said, staring down at himself.

“Not really,” Scorpius agreed, looking at his reflection and noting that his pale, skinny legs definitely were not made for a skirt.

Somehow, Albus made it work, a boyish grin on his face as Cole came in. “Nobody wants to be the first person to leave, so we’re all going in a mass or whatever it’s called.”

“ _En masse,”_ Scorpius supplied automatically in a perfect French accent.

“Yeah, that. Anyway, I didn’t want you two to get distracted up here and get left behind.” He smirked.

“How considerate of you,” Albus said, rolling his eyes and following Cole from the dorm.

They were indeed faced with all of the Slytherin boys in skirts looking like nobody wanted to be the first person to leave. Some seventh years ended up taking the lead and they all followed, exchanging smirks and occasionally snorts of laughter. They ran into a big group of Hufflepuff boys all doing the same thing and there were many shouts of glee and wolf whistles before they were all forced to part ways and go to their various lessons.

Scorpius and Albus had Care of Magical Creatures outside and as they walked, Albus took Scorpius’ hand and squeezed it gently, almost like he was doing it unconsciously.

“It’s a bit cold,” Cole commented, swishing his skirt around. “Know what I mean?”

“It just feels like I’m wearing dress robes,” Scorpius replied while Albus laughed. “Like I’m very, very overdressed for Care of Magical Creatures.”

Hagrid didn’t seem to care at all that most of his class weren’t in the correct school uniform, but he did have a message from Professor McGonagall to pass on before he set them off with their bowtruckles.

“I’m supposed ter say, anyone who wants ter talk about their school uniform is to meet wi’ Professor McGonagall in the Great Hall after class is over. Right, on with today’s lesson: trimming a Bowtruckle’s sprout.”

Scorpius forgot he was wearing a skirt, until he went to put his wand away and realised he didn’t have a pocket anymore. He stuck his wand behind his ear in annoyance. Hagrid explained their task and set them off, circling between each student and giving advice here and there. The tricky part was convincing the Bowtruckles to sit still long enough to trim their sprouts; Scorpius’ seemed more determined to crawl all over the table. In the end, he and Albus found both their Bowtruckles were happier if they were side by side.

Scorpius had finally managed to start trimming his Bowtruckle’s sprout when an owl delivered a note to Hagrid halfway through the lesson, and he read it and cleared his throat loudly.

“I’m needed urgently up at the castle. Carry on with yer bowtruckles, the Head Girl will be coming ter supervise.”

Everyone looked incredibly confused as Hagrid screwed the note up and headed towards the castle, shaking his head. Juliette arrived minutes later and refused to tell them why Hagrid had been called away.

“Do you think it has something to do with our protest?” Imogen asked, holding her Bowtruckle at arm’s length.

“No, you heard McGonagall’s message,” Ava replied. “She’s going to hear us out.”

They left the lesson both having successfully tended to their bowtruckles, each sporting a few small cuts on their hands and Albus with one on his face when his Bowtruckle decided he was cutting its sprout too short. He touched it gingerly with the Dittany-soaked cloth Juliette had given him and winced.

The Entrance Hall was buzzing with excited chatter when they got inside the castle, and Scorpius assumed it was to do with the protest. Imogen and Ava were both determinedly walking towards the Great Hall but were rebuffed by James, who was in Head Boy mode, despite his own skirt. Somehow, he still managed to cast an intimidating but not unkind Head Boy vibe. 

“Sorry, Professor McGonagall was called away for something else, she’s going to reschedule. In the meantime,” James raised his voice, “you’re asked to go back to your common rooms for the time being.” He caught Scorpius’ eye and beckoned them over.

“What’s up?” Albus asked, clearly noticing the look on his brother’s face.

“It’s Lily. She’s gone bat-shit crazy. This,” he gestured around to the excited Entrance Hall, “is all because of her.”

“Oh Merlin, where is she?”

“McGonagall’s office, with Mum and Dad.” He looked very serious.

“What did she _do?”_

James glanced around as if checking for eavesdroppers. “So I’m still not sure of the whole story, but she was in Potions class this afternoon and Professor Jacobs gave them a test. You know the thing you do in third year when you have to brew a basic potion from memory.”

Albus and Scorpius both nodded and Albus looked almost as if he didn’t want to hear what had happened next. “Go on,” he groaned.

“From the sounds of it, Lily refused to use one of the ingredients she’d been given.”

“Let me guess,” Albus began, “because it came from an animal?”

“Correct. She said she won’t use anything in her potions anymore if it’s come from a living, breathing animal, that the only way an animal should be in the same room as her potion is if it’s still alive.”

Scorpius clapped a hand to his mouth. “The unicorn. She didn’t?”

“Of course she did. Her and Poppy Longbottom. They’ve had it hidden in the Room of Requirement since before Christmas, and today she released it into the dungeon to prove her point.”

“But she hasn’t proven any kind of point!” Albus cried exasperatedly. “All she’s done is annoy everyone and got a T for her potions test.”

James’ expression changed. “See, that’s where you’re wrong. She didn’t get a T.”

“But she didn’t make the potion?”

“She made it. Babbling Brew it was, and she found an alternative ingredient to the powdered unicorn horn. Gillyweed seeds.” He looked mildly impressed. “She’s very pleased with herself.”

“That’s why she was asking me about gillyweed,” Scorpius mused. “That’s a relief.”

“So where is the unicorn now?”

“In the dungeons somewhere. Hagrid’s going to check it over and take it back to the forest. Lily thought she might get to keep it. She’ll be lucky if she gets to keep her place at school.” James shook his head.

“They wouldn’t expel her for this, would they?” Scorpius was in disbelief.

James shrugged. “I hope not.”

“Let’s go and wait outside McGonagall’s office and find out,” Albus put in.

“You’re supposed to go back to your common room,” James said exasperatedly. “They’re still trying to catch the damn thing.”

“I want to know what’s happened! Mum and Dad are here, they’ll tell us.” Albus spoke determinedly and took Scorpius’ hand.

“Tell me anything you find out!” James called after them, ready to send away any other of the dress code protesters.

“We’ll go via the common room, take these things off. I don’t want to be the only people left in them,” Albus muttered as they left the crowded Entrance Hall. “Plus my legs are cold,” he added.

Albus’ idea turned out to be a good one when they got to the Slytherin dungeon and found lots of their peers had already changed out of the skirts.

When they were back in trousers and had reached the correct corridor, Lily was sat outside the entrance to McGonagall’s office, looking defiantly pleased with herself. She had her arms folded and a smirk on her face.

“Hi, bro. What’s new? Actually, I already know what’s new with you two. Congratulations, of course.” She smiled at Scorpius and he felt himself blush furiously. “So, you haven’t had a chance to tell me about it yet. What happened?”

Albus spluttered. “Lily! No! That’s not what we’re here to talk about. What were you thinking?”

“I was thinking: I don’t like needlessly killing unicorns, I’m gonna use a flower instead.” She sighed as though it were obvious.

“You could be _expelled_ , Lily.” He sat down beside her and placed his hands atop her shoulders. “This was such a stupid thing to do!”

“No it wasn’t!” Lily argued. “It was actually a very smart thing to do. I got everyone thinking, didn’t I? Anyway, enough about me.” She turned away from Albus and patted the space on the other side of her, indicating for Scorpius to sit down. He did so gingerly. “How did it happen?”

“How did what happen?” Scorpius asked nervously.

“Scor, no! She’s trying to distract us. Lil, are Mum and Dad cross?”

Lily ignored her brother entirely. “You two are together now. How did it happen? I mean, I always knew it _would_ but you two were so slow on the uptake I thought we’d have to wait until-“

“Lily! We’re not talking about that now.”

“Well I’m so bored of talking about my thing. I just had to do it twice for McGonagall and then again for Mum and Dad. It’s old news now, but _this_ is great! Thanks, Al.” She patted him on the cheek and he scowled.

“Why are you thanking me? I haven’t done anything to help you, I’m not part of this.” He held both hands up in surrender.

“Well, to answer your previous question, Mum and Dad are _very_ cross but this will be the perfect diversion. They won’t be nearly as angry with me when they find out you two are finally together. So will you tell me how it happened now?”

Albus sighed. “Fine. Scorpius kissed me. Happy? Now what did Mum and Dad say?”

“Hey! There’s so much more to it than that,” Scorpius protested when Lily sent him a gleeful look.

“Scorpius! I didn’t think you had it in you, well done. I’m so happy for you.”

Albus sulked as the staircase to McGonagall’s office sprang into action and a grumpy looking Poppy emerged. She stomped over to Lily, Albus and Scorpius and threw herself down on the bench dramatically.

“They’re deciding our punishment now,” she moaned.

“Ooh I wonder what it’s going to be?” Lily pondered, as if she were talking about what they were going to have for dessert.

“What if they don’t let you play Quidditch anymore?” Albus suggested and Lily scoffed.

“They won’t do that.”

The staircase moved again and out stepped Albus’ parents, followed by Professor Longbottom and a blonde witch who must have been his wife. Albus’ dad was speaking gravely with his mum and they both looked up at the sight of Albus and Scorpius there too.

“Boys!” Ginny brightened up and immediately pulled him and Albus into a hug at the same time. “I’ve missed you.”

“Hello,” Scorpius said into her shoulder, once again noting how motherly Ginny’s hugs were.

She released them and started smoothing Albus’ hair down. “This looks nice. Teddy said you let him do something different with it.”

Albus shrugged and put his hands in his trouser pockets. “Yeah, well…”

“So… no punishment?” Lily said tentatively. Ginny suddenly turned stern and glared at her. “Sorry, I just thought if we’d already moved onto talking about Al’s hair then you must be done with me.”

“Lily, you’re in enough trouble already.” Harry sighed and turned to Albus and Scorpius. “What are you both doing here?”

“Nice to see you too, Dad,” Albus muttered but Lily spoke over him.

“Albus has something to tell you both, don’t you, Al?” She elbowed him in the side and he elbowed her back even harder.

“Shut up, Lil. No I don’t.”

“Yes he does.” Lily turned to their parents. “Albus and Scorpius are-“

“Lily Luna Potter, you are supposed to be thinking about the seriousness of what you’ve done.” Ginny Potter’s voice was sharper than Scorpius had ever heard it.

“I _am_ , it’s just…” She tailed off at the look on her father’s face.

Poppy tentatively stood up from the bench. “Well, I suppose this is all settled then, I'll just be-”

“Poppy Alice Longbottom, you get back here right now!” her mother shouted and Poppy flinched. “You are in _so_ much trouble.”

“I’ll let you take it from here,” Professor McGonagall said with a sigh and returned to her office. Poppy’s mum and dad marched her away in the direction of Professor Longbottom’s office and Scorpius was left with four fifths of the Potter family.

“Maybe we should go.” Albus stood up nervously.

“ _Maybe_ you need to stay and tell Mum and Dad your exciting news.” Lily grabbed his hand and pulled him back down.

Albus gave his mother a desperate look and she smiled at him warmly. “Later, Al.” She addressed her daughter. “Come on, me and you are going to have a bit of a talk.” Ginny beckoned for Lily to follow her down the corridor, leaving Scorpius and Albus with just his dad.

Albus’ dad put his hands in his pockets and surveyed them both. “So, I think I can guess what your exciting news might be,” he said quietly.

“Dad, please.” Albus stared at his feet.

“Don’t worry, that’s it.” Harry held his hands up in surrender. “That’s… good.” He smiled kindly at Scorpius who grinned sheepishly back. “I’ve lost a bet with your father, but that’s good.”

“What?!” Albus looked affronted.

“Don’t tell your mum I just said that,” Harry winked at Albus, who was shaking his head in disbelief. “Come here,” he said warmly, and he held his arms out to Albus. “It’s nice to see you.”

“Nice to see you too, Dad,” Albus repeated, this time without a trace of sarcasm, standing up and hugging his father.

“Thanks for not being the reason me and Mum had to come up here today.”

Albus laughed as he withdrew from Harry’s arms and he glanced at Scorpius. “I think our trouble-making days are over. What’s going to happen to Lily? She’s not being expelled, is she?”

Albus’ dad shook his head and joined them both on the bench. “No, she’s not going to be expelled. She’s in detention for the rest of the month, she’s banned from the next Hogsmeade weekend and the next Gryffindor Quidditch match.

“But between you and me,” he glanced around the corridor and lowered his voice, “what she did was really quite impressive. You know our Lil, if she wants something enough, she’ll make it happen and she still made the potion, didn’t she?”

“You’re way too soft on her, Dad,” Albus grinned. “She _stole a unicorn!”_

“Hmm, she did, didn’t she? Still, it’s impressive her and Poppy found another ingredient that worked. Apparently they want to find an alternative for every animal based ingredient.” Harry looked perplexed by his daughter.

“Oh!” Scorpius said in sudden realisation. “ _Lily’s Special Potions Kit._ That’s what that was about!”

Albus shook his head. “She’s mad. You can’t swap all the ingredients in a potion and expect it to work properly. What did she use instead of powdered unicorn horn?”

“Gillyweed seeds,” Harry supplied and Albus looked pensive, then his expression cleared.

“Because gillyweed is an aquatic plant so its seeds repel water, like a unicorn’s horn. Perfect for a Babbling Brew. I don’t think they’d work in a potion like Amortentia where the horn’s residual magic reacts with the other ingredients.” He tailed off and then seemed to catch himself. “Wow, I just reached Scor-levels of geekiness there!”

His dad looked highly impressed with Albus. “Seems you got the potioneering genes of the family, Al.” He stood up and clicked his neck to one side. “Well, I’d better go and deliver Lily’s sentence if your mum hasn’t already. Will you eat dinner with us later, Albus? You too, Scorpius.”

Scorpius blushed at being addressed directly and mumbled thanks, looking to Albus for his reaction.

“We’d love to, Dad,” Albus replied and Harry beamed, ruffled his son’s hair and left them alone.

“Today has been… eventful,” Scorpius spoke into the silence after he’d gone.

Albus stood up and took his hand, swinging it loosely between them as they walked in the opposite direction to Albus’ parents.

“Today has been wonderful,” he replied with a glowing smile.

Scorpius just looked at him, his best friend, the person he would trust with his life, the person who meant more to him than anyone, and smiled back, knowing this was just the start for them.

They couldn’t have been more right in saying it was going to be _their year._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That’s it, the end of the story has been reached! There is one more chapter to go, an epilogue a few months later, but this is the end of Scorbus’ getting-together story! I’ll save all the emosh stuff for the final post, but I just want to say such a big thanks to everyone who has supported this story, I never expected this much of a response❤️  
> Love and thanks go to Beks and Marina for beta-ing and generally being amazing.  
> I’m on tumblr as littlerose13writes (and I’m thinking of posting some bonus scenes there when the epilogue is up!)  
> Have a great week everyone, and for the last time, Happy Monday!❤️


	27. Epilogue: Five Months Later

The sun shone, birds sang and Scorpius revelled in the light feeling in his heart. Exams were finally over and here he was walking through Hogsmeade village with his father, knowing his boyfriend wasn’t far away at The Three Broomsticks.

It was Saturday afternoon and the Quidditch final that day between Gryffindor and Slytherin had come to a dramatic end when Lily caught the snitch and was knocked off her broom by a bludger. She was nearly fifty feet up, but thanks to the quick actions of both her brothers, wasn’t hurt at all. Scorpius hadn’t thought watching his boyfriend play Quidditch could get much better, until he watched him catch his little sister like that and realised he was wrong.

The Potters had invited him and his dad to lunch afterwards and Rose and her family were joining them too, but Scorpius was fairly sure everyone else was already there.

“I’m looking forward to congratulating Albus. Best Quidditch final I’ve ever seen, even if it is the only Quidditch final I’ve seen since my school days,” his dad commented as they walked. He had a spring in his step and seemed happy.

“Sorry I’ve never tried out for the team, Dad,” Scorpius said, only half-joking, as it was usually only parents of the team who attended the House Cup final.

Draco smiled. “If you wanted to join, I’m sure you’d be wonderful. But I’ve never wished you would. Anyway, the Potters had all three of their kids in this game, it’s not like they couldn’t spare the extra seat.”

“It’s good to see you, Dad.”

They stopped at the doorway to the pub and his dad held the door open for Scorpius. “It’s lovely to see you too, Scorpius.”

“Ah, Draco, you made it,” Harry waved them over to a large table by the window. “Excellent match, wasn’t it?”

The two were smirking at each other and Scorpius knew Harry was making a joke because Gryffindor had beaten Slytherin for the Quidditch cup. His father and Albus’ were on good terms, even friends these days, but they would always enjoy making a good-natured joke at the other’s expense.

“Yes, the Gryffindor team really have got so much better than I remembered them being. Dodgy captain in our sixth year if I remember rightly.”

As they went to sit down, Ginny approached the table with a selection of drinks levitating in front of her.

“Hello, Draco, Scorpius.” She smiled warmly and carefully lowered the drinks down, evidently about to head back for more.

“Thankyou so much again for the invitation, Ginny,” his dad said politely. “You really didn’t have to.”

“Nonsense, of course! I know what a Quidditch fan you are, and I think Albus liked knowing there was a fellow Slytherin rooting just for him.” Ginny smiled and continued on her way to the bar.

“Scor,” Albus said quietly, sliding in to sit on Scorpius’ other side. He rested a hand gently on the top of his leg and leaned forward to kiss him on the lips just briefly in greeting.

“What’s it like being boyfriends? Is it lovely?” Lily was watching them dreamily from the other side of the table.

“What sort of question is that, Lil?” Albus asked in confusion.

“An honest one. I really want to know! I’ll never get to experience _being_ a boyfriend.” She rested her head on her hand and blinked at Albus, clearly expecting an actual answer.

Albus humoured her, like he always did. “Well, I don’t know, it’s-”

“It’s the loveliest,” Scorpius interrupted, wrapping an arm around Albus’ shoulders and kissing the top of his head. Albus smiled and blushed just a tiny bit.

Throughout the meal, Albus insisted on curling his foot around Scorpius’ so their legs were intertwined and they were sitting as close together as possible without Albus actually sitting on his lap. They kept stealing little glances at each other and laughing, which was annoying Rose who sat on Albus’ other side.

“Can you two just stop being so _cute_? It’s sickening.”

“Nope.” Albus stuck his tongue out at her and she sighed.

“You’re sickening, Rosie Posie,” Lily giggled.

When everyone had finished eating and the plates were cleared, Harry awkwardly stood up and cleared his throat until most of them had noticed he wanted to say something.

“I just wanted to say a few things,” Albus’ dad raised his glass and looked around the table. The Three Broomsticks was quiet, with only a couple of other tables occupied with just one or two people each, and Harry’s voice carried clearly around the entire pub.

“First, congratulations to my wonderful godson and my beautiful niece on their engagement. We’re all so happy for you.”

There was a general murmur of agreement around the table and Teddy threw an arm around Victoire’s shoulders, kissing the top of her head. Albus caught Scorpius’ eye and mimed vomiting, but he was smiling brightly.

“I’m best man, right, Ted?” James nudged him in the side and Teddy rolled his eyes.

“We’ve been engaged for two days, James.”

“That’s a yes!” James said loudly to the table.

“Secondly,” Harry interjected, “well done to James, for leading the Gryffindor team to victory this year, finishing his Hogwarts education and starting his professional Quidditch career this summer. Puddlemere are lucky to have you, Jamesy.”

James grinned around at everybody, not in the least bit embarrassed by his dad’s nickname for him.

“Well done and good luck also to Albus and Scorpius and Rose,” Harry nodded to each of them in turn, “for completing their exams and becoming NEWT students.”

Scorpius felt himself go a bit pink; he wasn’t expecting Albus’ dad to include him in his speech. He muttered “thankyou,” as Albus squeezed his hand under the table.

Lily coughed loudly and obviously from her father’s side and he smiled fondly down at her. “And of course well done to my talented daughter, for catching the snitch in today’s game.” Lily grinned triumphantly. “And to my sons again, thanks for not letting your sister die.” He raised his glass and everyone laughed.

Harry’s speech seemed to mark an unofficial end to the meal, as Lily started clamouring to go to Teddy’s house and see his owl, and Rose mentioned something about needing to get back to school and everybody began to naturally disperse. His dad was in conversation with Harry, and Scorpius approached Ginny with Albus in tow.

“Thankyou so much for inviting me to lunch,” Scorpius said, smiling at Albus’ mum.

“You’re very welcome, Scorpius.” Ginny pulled him into one of her lovely hugs. “I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot of you over the summer too. Has Albus told you about our plans for going away yet? I’m sure he’s forgotten to mention it, but we’d love you to come with us.”

“Really?” Scorpius squeaked at this news and followed Ginny’s gaze across to Albus, who looked sheepish.

“Yeah, I did forget.” He took hold of Scorpius’ hand. “Hey, Scor, do you want to come to California with my family this summer?”

Ginny patted him on the shoulder. “I’ll speak to your dad.”

They said their goodbyes and left the Hogsmeade pub, starting the reasonably long walk back to school hand in hand. Scorpius was forcibly reminded of that day back in January, when he’d gone on that disastrous date with Rose and had walked back to school with Albus when it was all over, and how being with Albus had just felt infinitely more _right_ than anything else.

He tugged on Albus’ hand to stop him and leaned forward to kiss him, unable to think about much else in that moment. Albus pulled away with a crooked smile. “That was nice. Any particular reason?”

Scorpius shrugged. “Just proving a point to in-the-past-me. I can kiss you now, and there was a time I never thought I’d be able to do that.”

Albus’ eyes softened and he resumed walking at a slower pace, wrapping his arm around Scorpius’ waist and tucking his head into the crook of Scorpius’ neck. “I know what you mean. If we’d told ourselves this time last year what was going to happen…”

“I wouldn’t have believed it,” Scorpius whispered, his arm around Albus’ shoulders. “I still can’t believe I’m lucky enough to have you as my boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend and best friend,” Albus corrected, smiling up at him. Scorpius caught his lips in a quick kiss, fighting the urge to say the words hovering on his lips as they reached the school gates, still wrapped up in each other.

Late June sunshine blazed from above and bathed the grounds of Hogwarts with warmth and the perfume of many summer flowers. As they walked across the grounds, Scorpius gently swung his arm back and forth, Albus’ hand clasped in his. He gazed admiringly over at his boyfriend, who was incredibly upbeat for somebody who’d just lost a Quidditch match. Instead, he was recounting once again the thought process he’d gone through when Lily was knocked off her broom by a bludger.

“And I just saw her go and my broom shot forward. I barely had to steer, it just sort of happened. It’s a good thing James went too, because I don’t know if I would have caught her.”

Scorpius raised one eyebrow; from where he had been standing, it looked like Albus had caught most of Lily with only a bit of assistance from his brother. “I’m just glad it was the other Beater and not Cole. That could have been awkward.”

“As much as I like Cole, I don’t think I could have forgiven him for almost killing my sister,” he said dryly while nodding.

“No, me neither,” Scorpius agreed.

Albus nudged him playfully in the side. “Who would you do yoga with then?”

Scorpius rolled his eyes. “Definitely not you.”

Albus grinned and moved his body a little bit closer to Scorpius’ side. “Are you insulting my _Half-Moon Hippogriff_ or whatever it was called?”

“There’s a reason Lily didn’t invite you back after the first time.” Scorpius laughed. “You’re supposed to focus on your breathing, not how many jokes you can make out of each pose.”

Albus snorted. “Breathing is overrated.”

“I actually find a three-part breath to be very calming, gets me through difficult situations.” Scorpius shot Albus a sideways glance. “Like when you start talking about your Potions OWL.”

Scorpius knew he was hardly one to talk about geeking out over a school subject, but it didn’t make him any less inclined to tease his boyfriend.

“That question was worded poorly!”

“You’ll get an Outstanding and you know it. You’re the only one in our class who made a perfect cure for Dragon Pox the second time around when we had to work by ourselves.”

Albus’ ears turned pink. “I wouldn’t say _perfect_ …”

“Professor Jacobs did,” Scorpius sang.

“I still think I could make it better, maybe with a few-“ he broke off, stopped walking and smiled at Scorpius. “No more potions talk, I’m sorry.” He leaned forward and kissed Scorpius briefly.

“I love it when you’re the geeky one for a change,” Scorpius said softly as Albus pulled away, which only caused him to lean in again for another kiss.

“Ahem.” Somebody cleared their throat and they broke apart, Albus with a laugh at what they’d thought was a secluded part of the grounds on their walk back, and Scorpius with a mixture of bemusement and horror. He knew that cough.

“Er, hi Dad,” he said sheepishly, turning around, only to find it wasn’t his dad at all but a grinning James Potter.

“Wow, that actually worked!” he said triumphantly, laughing at Scorpius’ bewildered expression and Albus’ mutinous glare.

“How did you make that sound so much like my dad?” Scorpius asked incredulously.

“He kept coughing during lunch, I’m good at imitations.” James shrugged.

“Have you been following us the whole way back?” Albus gave his brother an annoyed look.

“No, only this last bit. Merlin, you two are slow walkers. I only left the Three Broomsticks about five minutes ago!” He reached into his pocket. “Al, you left your wallet behind. Teddy agrees with me that it’s absolutely adorable that you keep a picture of you and Scor-“

“Give me that!” Albus snatched the wallet away and stuffed it into his pocket.

James simply smiled serenely. “Is it just the PDA that’s taking you two so long then?”

“There was nobody around until you turned up,” Albus retorted. “Also you are the least allowed to talk about PDA. That is beyond hypocritical.”

James wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “Scorpius tells you about his prefect rounds then?”

“Wait, you knew that Thea and I saw you? That time when you were… with Juliette?”

James sighed wistfully. “Ah, back in the days when she would acknowledge my existence.”

“Before you started snogging other girls in front of her,” Albus put in conversationally.

James raised his eyebrows. “Not in front of her. Anyway, _she_ ended things with _me_.”

“That’s not how she tells it,” Albus continued. “Half of Hufflepuff apparently think you broke her heart.”

“I didn’t _mean to_ ,” James complained, suddenly appearing younger than Albus. “I felt really bad.”

“Don’t worry, James, you didn’t owe her anything. You can’t force yourself to have feelings for someone.”

James beamed and threw an arm around Scorpius’ shoulders. “Thankyou, Scorp! I knew I liked you for a reason.”

“Who’re you after now?” Albus asked his brother knowingly and James perked up as he removed his arm.

“Henrik, your Quidditch captain,” James said slyly.

“Aw, were you jealous because your baby brother’s got a boyfriend now?” Albus teased and James rolled his eyes and shook his head.

“Where are you two off to, anyway?” James asked, ignoring Albus’ comment.

“Our friends are by the lake,” Scorpius told him happily. He was looking forward to spending some time lounging in the sun, not thinking about exams or Quidditch or anything.

“Shouldn’t you be in your common room and on your way to being hideously drunk right now, Captain?” Albus laughed.

James winked and ruffled Albus’ hair. “Nope, I have my first session with Puddlemere this week. On a drinking ban!” He sprinted off and called over his shoulder, “catch you two lovebirds later!”

“Reckon he’s got a chance with Henrik?” Scorpius took Albus’ hand again and they resumed their slow stroll.

“It’s James.” Albus rested his head on Scorpius’ shoulder as they walked. “He’s probably already planning who to take to Teddy’s wedding.”

Teddy and Victoire were set to get married in only a few months, that summer. James had been telling anyone who would listen that Teddy was going to propose after Victoire’s graduation ceremony from SMSHE, so Teddy got there first and did it the night before. But Victoire had suspected he was going to; she’d told Scorpius so the last time he attended her support group.

“Oh I’m so excited! I’ve never been to a wedding before.” Scorpius sighed dreamily and gave Albus’ hand a squeeze.

“You’re in luck then, Scor.”

“I am? Why?”

“You’re now obliged to be my date to every single one of my cousins’ weddings in the future, and there are a lot of them. Teddy really did us all a favour falling in love with Vic and all, because that takes out one whole wedding.”

Scorpius felt a pleasant squirm in his stomach. They were only sixteen, with their whole lives ahead of them, but he struggled to picture any future for himself that didn’t somehow have Albus in it too.

“Last wedding I went to was my Uncle Percy’s when I was six,” Albus chatted, apparently unaware of how pleased his words had made Scorpius. “It was all formal and stiff, dress robes and standing around for hours. Teddy’s won’t be anything like that.”

“But you look good in dress robes,” Scorpius muttered slyly, leaning into Albus.

Albus smirked. “Slughorn’s end of year party is formal dress.”

“Speaking of that, I don’t know who to ask.” Scorpius pretended to be in deep consideration. “I was thinking maybe Rose?”

“Good idea, and I’ll ask Thea, shall I?”

They both cracked up laughing and Scorpius threw his arm around Albus’ shoulders, pulling him towards him and kissing the top of his head. Gone were the days where he had to hold back from acting the way he wanted to around Albus and he was all the more happier for it. Albus smiled up at him and tucked his arm around Scorpius’ waist as they kept walking.

“I love seeing you this happy,” Albus mused. “I’m glad exams are over.”

“I was happy during exams! You know I love a bit of academic pressure.”

Albus gave him a look. “Scor, you didn’t sleep for three days.”

“I dozed.”

“I had to physically drag you away from the library to get you to eat dinner.”

“Which was completely unnecessary, I’d already eaten.”

“Pepper Imps don’t count.”

“Pepper Imps always count.”

Albus acted like he hadn’t even heard Scorpius. “And then you had your first panic attack in months right before our Charms practical,” he said dryly.

Scorpius sighed. “And you cast a patronus and then I took the exam and everything was fine.”

“Well I nearly didn’t think you would be able to. You went all weird, and you said-“

Scorpius froze. He knew exactly what Albus was referring to and he’d been avoiding bringing it up, not wanting to move things too fast. He had sort of hoped that Albus hadn’t heard what he’d said the day of the Charms exam.

Albus had stopped walking and he smiled up at Scorpius shyly. “You said you loved me.”

Scorpius gave a tiny nod, acknowledging his words.

“Do you really, Scor?” He looked hopeful, expectant, maybe even a bit tense.

Scorpius felt the corner of his mouth quirk up in a smile he couldn’t even help. “Yeah, I do.”

“You do?” Albus’ smile grew and grew until he was beaming.

“Well, I certainly think so,” Scorpius amended and Albus laughed.

“That’s good,” he said, still smiling, “because me too.”

“You too?” Scorpius slid his hands around Albus’ lower back.

“I certainly think I love you too.” Albus reached up and hooked his hands around Scorpius’ neck. They kissed for just a second and pulled away, smiling uncontrollably at each other.

“Big day for Scor and Al,” Albus said in a bright, jokey voice.

“Really? In third person?”

“At least I don’t refer to myself as Potter the Platonic.”

“I knew I shouldn’t have told you about that.”

Albus’ expression looked as if he was going to keep teasing Scorpius but it suddenly changed, his jaw dropping and an excited glint in his eye. “Look, Scor!” He grabbed Scorpius by the shoulders and wheeled him around, pointing to a spot in the distant trees.

“What am I supposed to be looking at?” Scorpius followed Albus’ fingertip but saw nothing of interest.

“There, about to fly out from behind that tree. It’s a hummingbird!”

Scorpius felt a huge smile take over as he did indeed spot what Albus had seen, a tiny hummingbird emerging, its distinctive beak and colourful wings giving it away even at such a distance. “It’s flying towards us, that means good luck!”

“What does it mean if your patronus animal is flying away?”

“I’m not sure,” Scorpius replied, not taking his eyes off the hummingbird which was hovering gently. “I assume bad luck?”

“I’m sure it’s not as straightforward as that. It’s something to do with moon phases and whether Mercury is or isn’t in retrograde.” Albus shrugged. “We’d have to ask Lily, she knows a weird amount about patronus magic. She’s really into it.”

“I know,” Scorpius chuckled. “She made me a little hummingbird out of forget-me-nots and charmed it to last forever. Your sister’s just lovely.”

“When she’s not stealing unicorns.” Albus smiled fondly. “She made me one too, a raven out of larkspur. It’s at home on my windowsill, no doubt the cat’s knocked it down by now. It’s sort of her thing at the moment, she’s making them for everyone. I think your dad’s going to be next, when she can work out how to make a scorpion tail.”

“He’ll like that, now he’s got his patronus back.”

Albus took his hand and they continued walking again in the direction of a large beech tree beneath which their friends usually gathered. The glorious sunshine and the Quidditch final that day meant the Hogwarts grounds were filled with students relaxing and celebrating, and they weaved their way through clusters of seventh years to where Imogen and Ava were sitting by themselves.

“Finally you two made it!” Ava yelled in greeting. “Everyone’s left! How was lunch with the in-laws?”

Scorpius laughed at her wording and joined Albus on the soft grass, crossing his legs beneath him. “Great, thanks.”

“Do you have my camera?” Albus asked and Imogen leant over to return it to him. “Oh, thanks.”

“I played with the focus a little bit, I hope you don’t mind,” she smiled as Albus looked at the pictures she’d taken.

“No, it looks great! You need to teach me how to use this thing properly now our exams are over.” He looked up from the camera and Imogen grinned. “Hey, this one’s so cool! How did you do that?”

He leant lightly across Scorpius to show her the picture and he smiled at the casual way Albus traced tiny circles on the top of his leg as he did so. Scorpius could see the picture was of Thea and it  was smattered with tiny gold pinpricks of light.

“Firefly charm,” Imogen said simply.

“Where is Thea?” Scorpius asked, noticing the subject of the photo wasn’t there.

Imogen exchanged a sly look with Ava. “Oh, she’ll be along shortly I’m sure.”

“Oh!” Scorpius laughed in realisation of where Thea was and what she was doing, or more to the point, who she was with.

“The blissful honeymoon stage. They can’t get enough of each other.” Imogen sighed.

“I would hope so, the amount of time it took them to actually get together and stop all the game-playing,” Ava snorted.

“Either that or they’re arguing again,” Albus put in.

“They’re always arguing, that’s just what they do.” Scorpius lay on his stomach in the grass, picking his feet up behind him.

“Not like you two,” Ava said with a sly grin. “You’re too loved up to argue.”

Scorpius felt himself blush at her words and the timing of them, even though she couldn’t have known how significant it was to say that today. _Loved up._ He caught Albus’ eye and he too had gone a bit pink. He stretched out onto the grass beside Scorpius, but on his back and turned his head so he was facing Scorpius with a smile.

“Nah, we argue sometimes.”

Ava scoffed. “Please, name one argument you’ve had since you got together.”

Albus considered her words for a second while Scorpius hesitated to find an answer. “Well there was… um, I think… that time…”

“See?” Ava folded her arms in triumph and grinned. “Sickening.”

“Greetings, all.” Cole’s cheerful voice floated over and he joined them on the grass.

“Just you?” Albus asked.

“Yeah, for now. Some sixth years are trying to charm the giant squid and they’ve attracted quite the crowd. That thing freaks me out; I didn’t want to watch.” He sighed and rested back on his elbows, squinting slightly in the sun. “Nice day.”

“Yep,” Albus muttered, playing with his camera again, holding it up to his eye and pointing it up at the sky. He inspected the picture he’d taken, frowned and shuffled on the grass to reposition.

The next time his vision was obscured by his camera, Scorpius lazily plucked a few blades of grass from the ground and sprinkled them across Albus’ chest beside him. Albus didn’t notice, clicking away with his camera, until Scorpius had successfully balanced quite a sizeable pile of grass across his boyfriend’s torso. He was just adding a daisy to the top when Albus lowered his camera and noticed.

“Scorpius,” he laughed, sitting up and brushing the grass from his front. He picked the daisy up and twirled it between his fingers, reaching down and tucking it behind Scorpius’ ear. “Now, smile.” He pointed his camera at Scorpius, who felt himself blush.

“You don’t want a picture of me,” he protested.

“Yes I really do,” Albus replied, adding another daisy to his blonde hair and repositioning the camera. Scorpius sat upright as he laughed nervously and looked away from the camera. “Please? Just one smile?”

It was very hard to say no to Albus, so Scorpius found himself smiling brightly while Albus snapped a picture, looking down at the result with a small smile.

“Can I take one of you two together?” Imogen held her hand out for the camera. “As the most functioning couple of the group, you’re obliged to let me.”

Scorpius expected Albus to say no, but he rolled his eyes and handed the camera over, scooting closer to Scorpius, tucking his head into the crook of Scorpius’ neck and putting an arm around his waist. Scorpius smiled and wrapped his arm around Albus’ shoulders, smiling sweetly at Imogen and the camera.

“Adorable, completely adorable,” she said as she snapped away.

“You don’t normally like posing for photos,” Scorpius lay back on his stomach as Imogen started looking at the photos she’d taken.

Albus shrugged. “I like today, I want to remember it.”

Scorpius rolled over onto his back and looked up at Albus. They shared a smile, both knowing Albus was referring to the step their relationship had taken that day.

Cole’s loud voice reminded Scorpius all their friends were still there. “Oh look, it’s our future Slytherin Quidditch captain.” He grinned up at Thea who seemed much more upbeat than the last time Scorpius had seen her after the game. He supposed a good snogging was enough to cheer her up.

She laughed and sat beside Cole, ruffling his brown hair fondly. “What if they pick you to be captain?” She craned her neck around. “Or you, Al. They might pick you.”

Albus scoffed. “Yeah right. Can you imagine me as Quidditch captain?”

There was a general murmur of nods and agreement that yes, all of Albus’ friends _could_ imagine him as Quidditch captain. But they all knew it would probably go to Thea, who had been preparing for captaincy since her third year.

“What about Gryffindor now James is graduating?” Imogen leaned over to pick up Albus’ camera again.

“Lily thinks it should be her,” Albus laughed. “Big ambitions for a fourth year.”

“I love your sister,” Thea sighed. “Rose reckons it’ll be that guy in sixth year, Hunter or whatever his name is.”

“ _Hadler_.” She was corrected as Rose fell down casually beside her. “His name is Hadler.”

Thea shrugged. “I was close.” She pressed a quick kiss to Rose’s cheek and the two smiled at each other.

“Merlin, it’s hot. Lessons are gonna be a nightmare this week,” Cole fanned himself with one hand.

“Aren’t you glad you can wear a skirt if you want to?” Ava put in from her position leaning lazily against his legs.

“Yeah, I’ll pass,” Cole muttered. “Not that it isn’t _great_ that you guys got the dress code changed,” he added hurriedly at Ava’s expression.

“McGonagall said it should have been done years ago, like during our parents’ generation.”

“I’m sort of glad we got to be the ones to change things,” Thea mused. “We’re part of Hogwarts history now.”

“My mum says it might even be mentioned in the next revision of _Hogwarts: A History_ ,” Rose continued.

“If it is, then that’s one of my life goals achieved way earlier than I expected,” Thea said in a jokey voice, although Scorpius knew she was at least a little bit serious.

The group fell into a companionable silence, Albus placed his camera by his side and lay down on his stomach beside Scorpius, lightly resting his hand on Scorpius’ chest and smiling across at him. He leaned down and connected their lips for just a second, but it was a second long enough to attract a wolf whistle from Cole.

“Oh shut up, you don’t do that when _they_ kiss,” Albus retorted and stuck his tongue out at Cole, gesturing to Thea and Rose who were too wrapped up in each other to even notice.

“Yes I do, I definitely do,” Cole sniggered. “Have you not met me, Al?”

Somebody behind Scorpius’ head cleared their throat but they were too far back for him to see, even when he tipped his head back.

“Hello, Scorpius,” the throat-clearer said in a clear and well enunciated voice.

He sprung up, dropping Albus’ hand in the process and turning around to see that it was Ruby, a third year Ravenclaw who had taken a bit of a shine to Scorpius during the History of Magic tutoring sessions he’d led that term.

“Um, hello, Ruby.” He smiled kindly, not making eye contact with Albus who he knew would be smirking.

“I just wanted to say I’m really going to miss History club and I really hope we can continue next year!” Her eyes shone with excitement and she hugged a book to her chest, not even waiting for a response before skipping off happily.

Scorpius slowly turned to Albus and Cole, who were both grinning gleefully.

“Your girlfriend really is adorable, Scorp, but Al is _right here_.” Cole used a false reprimanding tone.

Albus clutched at his heart dramatically. “It’s okay, Scor. Who am I to stand in the way of true love? I’ll tend to my poor broken heart alone.” He pretended to sob into his hands.

“You won’t be alone, Albus Potter. I’m here for you in this dark time.” Cole slung an arm around Albus’ shoulders and threw his other arm out into the distance.

“And you call _me_ theatrical,” Thea muttered, giving the boys a pitying look. “Stop teasing him about that poor girl and her little crush. I bet she really had to pluck up a lot of courage to come over here and say that.”

Cole turned so his back was to Thea, as if he’d been on her side all along. “Yeah, Al, imagine being nervous about telling someone you like them. Imagine that, Scorpius.”

“Remind me why I’m friends with you lot,” Albus groaned as everyone laughed.

“We’re related, you have to be my friend,” Rose said in a dry voice.

“We’re related to a lot of people, Rose,” Albus responded with a grin.

She waved his response away and checked her watch. “So, who wants to come to the victory party in the Gryffindor common room?”

Thea raised her eyebrows. “Too soon, too soon… sorry, T.”

“Screw it, let’s go! It’s where everyone will be, let’s be honest.” Thea stood up and Rose followed her. “You guys coming?”

Ava didn’t need telling twice and jumped up too. “Hell yeah, Elliot Parks will be all euphoric from winning the cup, I’m about to make him even happier.”

“Well I’d better come too, make sure you don’t make a complete fool of yourself.” Imogen smiled fondly.

“Hmm, be along in a bit,” Albus said sleepily from where he’d lay back down on Scorpius’ side.

“Yeah,” Scorpius added, not wanting to move.

“I’m not sticking around to be a third wheel,” Cole got up too. “See you two there.”

“See you there,” Scorpius waved lazily and their friends dashed off, Thea and Rose’s hands swinging together.

Albus rolled over onto his back so he and Scorpius were side by side. He joined their hands and shielded his eyes from the sun, gazing up at the sky.

“That cloud looks like a unicorn,” Scorpius muttered, his eyelids feeling heavy.

“That one looks like a marshmallow,” Albus replied and Scorpius turned to stare at him.

“Don’t they all look like marshmallows?”

“No idea, not even looking.” His eyes had closed and he wriggled closer to Scorpius on the soft grass. “I’love you,” he breathed against Scorpius’ neck. “S’glad I can say that now.”

Scorpius turned and caught his lips in a lazy kiss, thinking that, while this was just the ending he’d always wanted, really things were only just beginning for them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow I’m emotional, I can’t believe this is the last time I’ll be updating Sweeter Than Fiction! A huge thankyou to Beks and Marina for beta-ing❤️  
> Thanks to everyone who’s read my fic :) it makes me happier than you could ever know!  
> I am working on a sequel so look out for that soon (if you subscribe to me you won’t miss it!) but in the meantime, over on my tumblr littlerose13writes I’m planning to post some scenes from different characters’ pov every Friday between now and the sequel. If you have any suggestions for scenes you’d like to see, let me know! (No guarantees I’ll definitely write them but inspiration is always good :))  
> Thanks for sticking with me through all the pining and of course THAT chapter! I hope you liked the epilogue :)  
> I will be back soon with the sequel where we catch up with the boys in their seventh year of school  
> I love you all,  
> Rosie xxx


	28. Bonus Content

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> These are four scenes from Sweeter Than Fiction (sort of) I wrote from different characters' pov. The first one is brand new, the other three you may have read if you follow me on tumblr. I also wanted to tell you that I have finally finished the sequel! It's called Ten Feet Tall and posting will start this Monday. I really hope you will give it a read!

_Saturday 15th January, 2022  
_ Teddy's POV

Get Lucky

It was much, much quieter at this time. Hogwarts students had to arrive back at the castle no later than half past four, but in the freezing January weather, the place was almost empty of students by about three. Teddy had just seen his last customer out and he knew he only had one appointment left scheduled for that day. He also suspected the person in question had deliberately scheduled it at a quiet time when he knew Teddy would be alone.

Albus wanted to talk to him.

It was nice to see Albus in Hogsmeade, seeing as he’d refused to visit the village for most of the last two years. Teddy had tried not to take it personally but it was hard not to miss him when James was always bounding in so eagerly.

It was even harder when he heard what a tough time of things Al seemed to be having at school. He’d struggled to fit in and make friends at first, which Teddy had never understood. Albus was one of the sweetest-natured kids he knew growing up.

Teddy had always made a real point to check in with Al as much as he could at family events and he wrote to him consistently while he was travelling, even when Al’s replies were surly and unenthusiastic, something Albus had recently apologised for. He wished he had still been at Hogwarts, it was hard to understand how exactly Albus was feeling when he himself was so separated from the goings on of the castle.

Nowadays, things were much better though, and Al was happier and more settled at school. His self-confidence had sky rocketed and Teddy was relieved to see the cute kid he’d known as a teenager coming through in the young adult Albus was growing into.

With this in mind, Teddy was surprised to see Albus seemed to be nothing short of his usual self as he strolled in with his earphones playing his music to himself and handed Olivia his cloak and scarf. He wondered what sort of thing could be the matter as Al clattered down in front of him and caught his eye in the mirror.

“Alright, Al?” The last time Teddy had seen Al had been Christmas, before the Potters had gone away. “How was California?”

“It was fun, thanks. James got sunburnt, in December. I’ll never let him forget it. We went to an American League Quidditch match, it was great!” Albus spoke enthusiastically, giving nothing away, but Teddy knew him well and he just knew it was more than just his hair that had brought Albus to see him.

“And everything at school’s okay?” Teddy just needed a clue.

Al nodded and pulled the grey beanie he’d been wearing from his head. His dark hair was quite a bit longer than usual and it’s typical wayward ways were returning with a vengeance, thanks to the hat he’d been wearing. “It’s got a bit long really,” he said as he ran a hand through it uncertainly.

“The sun makes your hair grow faster,” Teddy told him knowledgeably. He’d offered to cut Al’s hair for him at Christmas before the Potters left, but Al had refused, saying it wasn’t fair for Teddy to have to work in his holidays. Teddy wouldn’t have minded one bit, and Al knew this; another reason he was sure the younger boy had something to say here today where nobody else could hear.

“That explains it then,” Al said, grinning.

“What would you like me to do with it?” Teddy asked him in a kind, you-can-tell-me-what’s-on-your-mind sort of voice. He ran his fingers through the messy strands, assessing it from all angles. “You’re on your way to looking even more like your dad,” he joked as he pulled the majority of Al’s hair back into the tiniest ponytail with one hand, an imitation of the knot in which Harry wore his own long hair.

Albus scowled at him in annoyance and attempted to bat Teddy’s hand away. “Not bloody likely.”

“Do you know, that actually quite suits you?” He teased Albus good-naturedly.

“ _Teddy_. No. Just… cut it like you normally do, please,” Albus chuckled.

Teddy shrugged and let go of his hair, pushing it back into place.

“Wait, er, actually, maybe  _not_  just like you normally do it.”

“Not just trim it like usual?” Teddy raised his eyebrows at Al’s request, he normally didn’t express much of a preference about the way his hair looked.

“No, I want-“ Albus hesitated and went a bit pink. “I want a proper style, something you think will look good.”

Teddy felt himself light up. “You don’t normally say that? It’s usually  _please Teddy, I don’t care what you do, just get it out of my eyes._ ”

“I, um, feel like a change. It’s about time I gave a shit about my hair.”

“Only if you want to,” Teddy replied, running his fingers through the back of Albus’ hair and thinking hard.

“Don’t do anything I’ll have to faff about with every day though, I don’t want to give that much of a shit.”

“I’ve got you, don’t worry.” Teddy placed his hands atop Albus’ shoulders reassuringly.

Albus was a tough nut to crack and he stubbornly refused to bring up whatever was bothering him for nearly the entire time Teddy was cutting his hair. Instead, he chose safe, general topics like James’ Quidditch signing and Lily’s latest detention and his upcoming sixteenth birthday.

It wasn’t until Teddy was putting the finishing touches to Al’s haircut that he asked the question which told Teddy he was about to find out why his younger brother was there.

And it was the reason he suspected.

“Vic was, like, your best friend, wasn’t she?” Albus asked uncertainly, his posture suddenly more tense. Teddy pulled up his own chair to one side of Al’s stiff shoulders and turned him round so they were facing each other on the pretence of cutting his fringe. Really, it was because he knew he was about to find out what Al wanted to talk about and he wanted them to be on equal footing, rather than Teddy towering over the now nervous-looking boy.

“She still  _is_  my best friend.” Teddy beamed proudly and Al mimed vomiting, which earned him a smack on the shoulder. “Keep still.”

“No, I mean, you were ‘just friends’ before you were, y'know, 'more than friends’.” He used air quotes for each of these phrases while Teddy started working.

“Well I’ve technically known her since she was a baby.” Al scowled and Teddy decided to stop being deliberately ignorant to wind him up. He sat back for a second, spinning his scissors expertly round one finger. “Sorry, Al. Yeah, me and Vic were great friends for years before anything happened between us. It was around my sixth year that I started to realise my protective feelings for her weren’t entirely 'older-brotherly’ but even then, it took me forever to act on them. I didn’t want to damage our friendship.”

It was plainly obvious to Teddy why Al was prying into this particular aspect of his and Vic’s relationship, he just wasn’t sure how obvious it was to Al. He resumed cutting Al’s hair before he continued speaking.

“It’s difficult when you develop a crush on one of your best friends.” He felt Al stiffen slightly as he finished trimming his fringe. There was a pause. “You spend half the time wondering if it’s normal to feel that way about your mate and the rest trying really,  _really_  hard not to think about kissing them.” Al nodded at this then quickly stopped himself. “Some people get lucky and their friendship turns into an even better relationship.”

“Like you and Vic, and Uncle Ron and Auntie Hermione,” Al filled in with a sad smile. “But the ones who don’t get lucky?”

Teddy shook his head, placing his scissors down. “I wouldn’t know, but it can’t be easy.”

“And how do you know if you’re going to be one of the lucky ones?” Al asked, turning away from the mirror to look at Teddy who was still sat beside him, a note of desperation in his voice.

“You don’t. Kissing Vic was probably the biggest gamble I’ve ever taken, but I couldn’t ignore my feelings much longer.” Teddy spoke honestly, hoping it was what his godbrother needed to hear. “And then, as it turned out, she’d been feeling the same way for just as long as I had. It just took one of us to pluck up the courage and do something about our feelings.”

Teddy vanished the cut hair and the cape protecting Al’s clothing but the teenager stayed sat where he was, twisting his hands together slightly.

"And what if-?” Al stopped mid question and looked at the floor.

“Go on.” Teddy gently placed a hand on Al’s shoulder, silently saying he already knew who the younger boy was talking about.

“What if the friend doesn’t like you in that way because…” he looked up from the floor, noting Teddy’s hand still on his shoulder. “Because he’s a boy too.”

“Why should that mean he doesn’t like you in that way?” Teddy asked simply.

Al looked like he didn’t know how to respond to that then shook his head after a moment. “Nah, I’m pretty sure he’s not…” he left his sentence unfinished, the word hanging in the air between them.

“What about you?” Teddy pressed, clasping his hands together between him.

Al was silent, looking away from Teddy.

“You don’t have to answer that,” he quickly added, leaning back away from the younger boy. "You don’t even need to  _have_  an answer to that.”

“No, I think I might be. I’ve never looked at a girl in that way before, not even once. Never even considered it, y'know. Well, I asked this girl out once but, I didn’t really want to… It was right after…” He looked back up at Teddy, a desperate look in his eyes. “Teddy, how did you know for definite you liked girls?”

Teddy considered his question for a second, leaning back in his chair with his arms folded and and shoving his feet up onto the counter in front of him and Al, his ankles crossed. He needed to be careful not to confuse his already uncertain little brother

“I mean, I don’t. Does anyone ever know for definite? I know I’m in love with Vic, she’s it for me, before her I had the odd crush on a few girls, I fancied a boy once too. But it’s been Vic since I was sixteen so it’s hard to say. I don’t know, Al. People are people, why does it matter?” He cocked his head to one side.

“But you’re straight?” Al had turned his chair towards Teddy.

Teddy hesitated. “I wouldn’t say so. Mostly, but not completely. I’m in love with a girl, I don’t have eyes for anybody else anyway, boy or girl. If Vic didn’t exist, who knows?”

Al nodded. “Yeah, that makes sense. I suppose, if I had to put a label on it, I would say I was-” he paused uncertainly.

“You can say it to me, Al. It’s not a legally binding contract.” Teddy lowered his feet from the counter and faced his brother.

“I’m gay, Teddy.” He gave a tiny, sheepish grin and Teddy smiled warmly. “And you’re the first person I’ve ever said that out loud to.”

Teddy placed an arm around Al’s shoulders. “Al, I’m really touched you told me first.”

“You’re my big brother,” Al said simply, leaning his head slightly into Teddy’s arm. “I trust you more than anyone.”

Teddy felt his throat narrow slightly and his face warm up at this admittance. Albus Potter was, of course, Teddy’s younger brother in every way but blood but Al had a real big brother and to hear him say so confidently that it was Teddy he trusted more than anyone was enough to bring proud tears to Teddy’s eyes. He blinked them back hurriedly, giving Al’s shoulder a squeeze and removing his arm.

“So your friend, he doesn’t know?” Teddy knew which friend it was and Al knew that Teddy knew, but until Al chose to use his name, Teddy would respect his wishes and act like he didn’t know who they were talking about.

“Does he know what: that I’m gay or that I fancy the pants off of him?”

Albus was being extra dry; this really mattered to him.

“Both, but mainly the second one.”

Al shook his head hurriedly. “I don’t want him to treat me any differently.”

“Do you really think he would?” Teddy asked, considering the boy in question and thinking it highly unlikely he would be one to show prejudice.

“No, I suppose not. I’m just worried it could change our friendship. I mean, I don’t think he’d treat me differently if he knew I was gay, but it’s not just that, is it? It’s that I have… feelings for him. And he’s probably straight.”

“Probably? Have you ever talked about it with him?” Teddy asked, suspecting the answer.

“No!” Al looked stricken. “And anyway, he’s on a date with Rose right now so…” he gazed in the direction of the shop door moodily as if picturing his best friend on this date with his cousin.

Teddy processed this information with some disbelief. He’d been at the Potters a handful of times over the summer while Scorpius Malfoy was visiting and the way he looked at Al? He was kidding himself, however this date with Rose had come about.

“Is this their first date?” Teddy tried to ascertain how serious this was.

Al nodded glumly. “It’ll probably be the first of many and I’ll have to sit back and watch him date my cousin.”

“You don’t know that. Maybe you should talk to him about it, when you feel ready. I’m not saying you have to tell him how you feel right away, but just breach the subject with him? Find out how serious this date was?”

Albus looked reluctant but he gave Teddy a tiny nod. “He  _is_  my best friend.”

Neither of them had used Scorpius’ name, even though Teddy was perfectly aware that’s who Al meant. They hadn’t needed to say his name, it was an unspoken agreement.

“Do you feel a bit better about it now you’ve got that off your chest?”

“Yeah, yeah I do. Thanks, Teddy.” Al smiled warmly.

“You’re welcome. Thanks for trusting me enough to tell me.”

“Don’t tell my parents, please. I want to do it. I know they won’t mind or anything, but I want to tell them.”

Teddy gripped Albus’ shoulder. “Al, of  _course_  I won’t tell your parents for you. I won’t tell anybody, not even Vic, it’s your business.”

Albus shrugged. “You can tell Vic if you want.” He looked like he meant it, his whole demeanour lighter than when he’d walked in. “Can I see my hair now?”

“Oh!” Teddy stood up with a grin and span Albus’ chair around with a flourish so he was facing the mirror. “Ta da!”

Albus peered at his reflection, leaning forward slightly and lightly touching his hair. The back and sides were much shorter than before but the front was still long and with Albus’ usual tousled mess, it looked artful and interesting falling across his cheekbone like that.

“Do you like it?”

“So that’s what my ears look like. It’s great! Thanks, Ted, for everything.”

 

* * *

 

_Tuesday 8th February, 2022  
_ James' POV

Inner Gryffindor

James sighed and massaged his temples with his thumbs again, staring at the Quidditch formation diagrams he was poring over until his eyes blurred. He’d been reprimanded in the past for spending more time on Quidditch strategy than his homework but he didn’t care. Quidditch was all James wanted to do, what he was best at. He loved being Gryffindor captain more than anything. 

“Your kid brother’s outside, looking for you,” a voice interrupted and James looked up from the diagram into the eyes of one of his dorm mates, Scott.  

“My brother? What’s he doing here?” James tucked the Quidditch diagram away and went to get up.

Scott shrugged and sloped off leaving James confused and uncertain. Albus never came to the Gryffindor common room. He rarely sought James out for anything specific and if he did it would be at a mealtime in the Great Hall. 

Trying not to worry, James approached the portrait hole and stood back for a gaggle of second years to pass. As the last person cleared, he climbed through the hole and came face to face with Albus, pacing ferociously up and down the short distance in front of the Fat Lady. 

“Al?” 

Albus stopped pacing and he looked up at James guiltily. His eyes were wide and afraid, his bottom lip caught between his teeth. 

“What’s wrong?” James asked worriedly.

Albus simply shook his head and James saw him swallow pointedly, going straight back to chewing at his lip. 

“Come in, tell me in here.”

James lead him into the Gryffindor common room, ignoring the Fat Lady’s disapproving tuts. Albus said nothing, allowing James to steer him to a corner table far from the central one James had been working at.

Like a magnet, Lily clocked her two brothers and immediately started making a beeline for them both. Albus noticed too and his expression became one of panic. 

“I can’t tell her, not yet,” Albus whispered under his breath.

James nodded in understanding, even though he didn’t know what was wrong with Albus yet. He knew how Albus was feeling; if something was bothering him, he wouldn’t want Lily to know until it was all sorted out. He supposed it was part of being an older brother. 

“What’s happened? Is it the-“ Lily started to say dramatically but James cut her off. 

“Lily, we’ll tell you later, nothing to worry about, it’s a boy thing.” 

He started to lead Albus away towards his dormitory and she folded her arms, affronted, shouting after them the whole way about how unfair they were being.

“She’ll forgive us eventually, won’t she?” James closed the door to his thankfully empty dormitory and strolled over to his bed. 

Albus nodded in silence and sat on top of James’ covers, wordlessly staring at his feet. 

James waited for a second and then sat beside Albus. “So, are you going to tell me what’s wrong? Or is sitting here and brooding helpful right now?” 

Albus said nothing and didn’t take his eyes off the floor.

James felt his whole mood darken. “Is someone bothering you again? I thought that had all stopped! Who is it, Al? I’m Head Boy, and I’m your  _ brother; _ I can put a stop to this.” He hadn’t realised he’d been clenching his fist while he spoke.

“It’s not that, I promise,” Albus told his shoes, his voice sounding strained. 

When Albus looked up, James spotted that his green eyes had filled with tears. Albus wasn’t a big crier, James could probably count on one hand the number of times he’d seen his brother cry, and he almost wasn’t sure what to do. Humour seemed the easiest response. 

“Don’t tell me, you’re regretting getting that haircut because you’ve realised it makes you look like the lead singer of  _ Firewhiskeys _ .”

It wasn’t even funny, James could have done much better with more time, but nevertheless, Albus cracked a tiny, watery smile. Result. 

“I wish Mum was here,” Albus said eventually in a small voice. “I want to… talk.” 

James lightly punched the top of his arm. “Aw, you needed a Mum chat and I was the next best thing here at school? I’m honoured, Baby Boy.” 

Albus rolled his eyes but then he nodded and shrugged. “I didn’t know who else to go to.”

“What about Scorpius?” James couldn’t pretend he wasn’t surprised Albus was coming to him for advice or consolment or whatever the hell he was there for. He’d always had Scorpius for everything James thought he could be for his little brother.

“I can’t… it’s, well, this is  _ about  _ Scorpius.” 

James blinked at his brother for a second, the knut slowly beginning to drop as he took in everything about his brother’s body language; he was lovesick. 

“You fancy Scorpius?” He couldn’t keep the gleeful tone from his voice. 

“Shhhh!” Albus waved his hands around madly in front of James’ face. “Shut up, will you?” 

“Okay,” James shrugged, “but you were about to tell me you fancy Scorpius, weren’t you. That’s why you need a Mum chat.” 

“No, that is  _ not  _ why I need a Mum chat.” 

“But you do fancy Scorpius.”

Albus stood up suddenly. “Never mind, maybe I’ll just talk to Lily instead.” 

James reached out and tugged at his hand, trying to smooth his expression into a serious one. “No! Wait, come back, Al. I’m sorry, I’ll stop teasing and let you explain.” 

Albus sat back down. “I don’t know what to do.” He looked right into James’ eyes. “I think I’ve lost my best friend.” 

James considered his words and started trying to make sense of them, a horrible conclusion coming to him. He wrapped his arm tightly around Albus’ tense shoulders. “Did he not take it well?”

“What? Take what well?”

“Scorpius. Did he not take you telling him you fancy him well?” There was a moment of silence. “Because, Al, let me tell you that Scorpius Malfoy would be  _ lucky  _ to have you as his boyfriend an-“

“Shut up right now, you fucking idiot.” Albus looked murderous all of a sudden and James realised whatever he’d said had been the wrong thing; perhaps the word  _ boyfriend  _ had freaked Albus out. “That’s not what happened.” 

“Tell me then,” James urged kindly. 

“Okay.” Albus wasn’t looking at him again but James felt him lean into his arm, still placed around his shoulders. “You’re right, I suppose I do fancy Scorpius. Rather a lot.”

“I  _ knew  _ it!” James fist pumped.

“The thing is, I don’t know if he’d ever see me as more than a friend. But the last three weeks have been  _ weird.  _ James, it’s like I can’t help myself. I keep holding his hand and sleeping in bed with him and he keeps letting me! It’s like… it’s like we’re suddenly  _ more  _ than friends.” 

“Have you kissed?” James asked logically. 

“No!” Albus sounded scandalised at the very idea. “It’s hard to explain, but everything feels very… couple-y. But he doesn’t know I fancy him and we haven’t talked about it and now I don’t know what to do.” 

“And Scorpius, he’s,” James hesitated, gesturing vaguely with his hands, “doing these  _ couple-y _ things back?”

Albus thought very hard for a second. “Well, yes.” 

“Sounds like he likes you too,” James shrugged like it was obvious. 

“No, I don’t think he does. He keeps trying to talk to me about it, but I know what he’s going to say. He wants us to stop acting like this, and I know it sounds bad, James, but I was enjoying pretending it was real too much!” 

“Albus, you can’t just keep holding his hand and pretending you’re a couple and never say anything, that’s ridiculous.” James shook his shoulders a little bit as if shaking some sense into his brother.

“I can’t  _ now,  _ because Thea saw us together and she thought we were a couple and it was so awkward. Nobody knew what to say, I could tell Scorpius just wanted to deny it all but he didn’t want to hurt my feelings, so I left,” he finished shortly. 

James’ earlier vision of Scorpius telling Albus he didn’t like him like that resurfaced. It would be a horrible thing for anyone to hear, but especially someone like Albus who was already so sensitive about being liked. He squeezed Albus’ shoulder in comfort.

“You know, you’re just going to have to face up to it eventually. If he doesn’t like you back, it’ll be hard for a while, but you can still be friends. Have you considered the option that he  _ does  _ feel the same way?”

Albus scoffed. “Don’t be silly.”

“I’m not being silly, why shouldn’t he like you?” 

“Because he isn’t gay,” Albus said darkly. “He has a crush on Rose.” 

James clicked his tongue in thought. “He’s said to you the exact words  _ I, Scorpius William Malfoy, am not at all gay and will never like another boy?” _

“Scorpius’ middle name isn’t  _ William,”  _ Albus stared at him incredulously. 

“Made it up, I don’t know his middle name. What is it?” 

“It’s Hyperion.” Albus flapped his hand distractedly. “This is not the point!” 

“Back to my question, has Scorpius ever told you he isn’t at all gay?”

“No,” Albus muttered.

“Then why are you assuming he isn’t? You’re being very heteronormative for someone who’s just admitted to fancying another boy.”

Albus looked as if he didn’t know how to respond to that and instead he scowled. “Don’t you want to know what I am?” 

“You’re Albus,” James replied simply. 

“I’m gay.” 

“Nice to meet you, Gay, I’m James.” He wrung his hand in an over the top handshake and Albus rolled his eyes. 

“You are the literal worst,” he groaned, but there was a hint of a smile playing at his lips.

“And yet, you’re not crying anymore after my stellar pep talk.” James mimed flicking his hair back proudly. “My point stands. Not being one hundred percent sure Scorpius likes boys isn’t a reason to think he can’t like you.”

“Fine, I just don’t think he could ever see me that way, even if he was gay,” Albus rested his chin on his hand. “I mean, look at him, he’s beautiful and clever and sweet. He deserves someone equal.”

James just looked at him for a second, his grumpy little brother who in that moment seemed more vulnerable than James had ever seen him. He knew Albus’ confidence could be shaky at times, but he’d thought things were so much better now, with the new friends he’d made and his position on the Quidditch team. Over the Christmas holidays, he’d been so much fun to spend time with, they’d really reaffirmed their relationship as brothers like when they were little. He’d had no idea how low Albus’ self-esteem could still be. 

“ _ You  _ are all those things and anyone would be lucky to go out with you. I think you need to practise a bit more self-love, Al,” James ruffled his hair and Albus squirmed away. “Have you ever tried meditating with Lily?” 

“The  _ silence your mind  _ thing? Didn’t work on me, I just ended up with  _ God Rest Ye Merry Hippogriffs  _ stuck in my head instead.” 

James snorted with laughter. “Remember the time we took Hugo’s elf teddy that sang all those traditional carols and hid it in baby Molly’s pyjamas.”

Albus grinned. “And the grown ups couldn’t work out where the sound was coming from for  _ ages  _ because everyone was passing Molly around like a parcel.” 

They both chuckled at the memory and then Albus sighed heavily. 

“Albus, this isn’t a disaster, I promise.”

Albus muttered something about how  _ yes it sort of was  _ but James ignored him. 

“Let Scorpius say what he needs to say, give him a chance to talk to you. He’s your best friend, you owe him that.” 

“I just… don’t need to hear him say he doesn’t feel the same way.” 

“Albus,” James started gently, “if that’s what he’s going to say, then yes you  _ do  _ need to hear it. I’m sorry, but you  _ do.  _ It’s the only way you can still be friends, and it’ll be hard to take but we’ll all still love you. You just have to be a bit brave, find your inner Gryffindor.” 

Albus looked entirely unconvinced, James didn’t think he was doing a particularly great job, but at least he’d stopped his brother crying. 

“Thanks, James, this is the most rational I think you’ve ever been.” A hint of a smile played at Albus’ lips. 

“That’s it.” James ruffled his hair again and Albus let him this time. “I was joking about your hair by the way, it looks good.”

“Well, thanks,” Albus muttered. 

“Anything was an improvement on the mop you had before.” James knocked his shoulder into Albus’ teasingly and he rolled his eyes. “We thought you were going for a man bun like Dad.” 

Albus laughed and James thought maybe he was feeling a bit better now, that he had managed to do something to help, even if it was only to make stupid jokes about Albus’ hair. 

“Want to eat dinner with me?” James offered, holding his hand out.

“Yeah, alright,” Albus nodded and accepted his hand, allowing James to pull him into a quick side hug. 

As much as James hated that Albus was miserable, it gave him a distinct sense of achievement to know he could go some way to making him feel better.

* * *

_Saturday 12th February, 2022  
_ Harry's POV

Laughing Over Breakfast

“Ooh I’m getting the waffles!” Ginny looked up from her menu, as if this was a completely normal and casual thing for them to be spending their Sunday morning doing.

“Do you think he’ll turn up? Is this place fancy enough?” Harry asked, aware of the childish edge to his question.

Ginny gave him a look which told him she was aware too. “ _Yes_  I think he’ll turn up. I thought we’d moved past this?”

Harry sighed. “I know. Just, if you’d told me twenty years ago I’d be getting breakfast with Draco Malfoy I wouldn’t have believed you.”

“If I’d told you twenty years ago we’d have three kids and have to go back in time to rescue one of them you wouldn’t have believed me either.” She unfolded her napkin and shook it out.

“Also true.” Harry tilted his head to one side. “Oh look, he’s here.”

Draco Malfoy was approaching their table for three, in his usual dark robes. Harry didn’t think he’d ever seen Draco in anything  _but_  impressive, fancy dark robes since their schooldays - which made that time he’d been early picking Scorpius up and caught Harry in his dressing gown even more embarrassing.

“Hello, Potters,” he said with the faintest hint of a smirk present.

Harry stood up and shook his hand, to be polite of course, not to remind Draco he was ever so slightly taller. “Glad you could make it,” he said, then immediately felt stupid because it came out like he was interviewing for an Auror position.

“Lovely to see you, Draco,” Ginny greeted him and smiled warmly. She always said the right thing.

They all sat down and Harry glued his eyes to his menu, realising he’d never done anything this close to socialising with Draco Malfoy before without at least one of their sons present. From the look on his face, Harry thought Draco was thinking the same thing.

“So, the boys-“

“Scorpius tells me-“

They both went to speak at the same time and there was a bit of awkward stuttering and  _oh, um_ s until Ginny saved them.

“Well, our boys seem to be having a much better time at school these days. From the way Albus tells it, I think he was actually looking forward to going back to school after Christmas. I thought I’d never see the day.”

Draco smiled gratefully. “Scorpius too. He seems very settled this year, much happier in himself.”

“They’ve made friends with Lee Jordan’s daughter,” Ginny mused conversationally. “I met her back in November, really sweet girl.”

“Yes, Scorpius mentioned her almost as much as Albus over the holidays.” Draco looked as close to thrilled as Harry had ever seen. “I’m very pleased he’s made more friends, I didn’t like that he was isolating himself. Not that his friendship with Albus has ever been a problem with me.”

Draco shot Harry a challenging look and Harry raised his eyebrows, ready to defend himself, when Draco did something unexpected. He  _laughed_.

“Yes, well, we can all get a bit rash in our decision-making where our kids are concerned,” Harry replied, completely thrown off. Is this how things were now? Did he laugh over breakfast with Draco Malfoy?

“Let’s just agree it’s wonderful Albus and Scorpius have made more friends and seem to be enjoying school,” Ginny cut in giving Harry a look, “and that their friendship is something we  _all_  support.”

“I do wonder though…” Draco trailed off and played with the edge of his napkin.

“What?” said Ginny sharply, her eyes bright and interested.

“Well, it occurred to me once before… Scorpius and Albus.” He took a long pause.

“Ah,” Ginny said. “You noticed it too.”

Harry instantly knew what she meant and he also snapped his interested gaze to Draco.

His expression was one of calculating thought. “Yes. Some things Scorpius says, did make me think that  _maybe_.”

“Albus too,” Ginny replied conversationally. “I had a chat with him about it, but I think I was so subtle he didn’t catch on to what I was getting at.”

“Would Albus tell you if they…?”

Ginny and Harry shared a look, silently aware they were on the same page.

Harry spoke for them both. “Not at first, we think he’d keep it to himself. And then if he told anyone, it would be Teddy. Would Scorpius?”

Draco hesitated. “I think he would tell me. Which makes me wonder if  _they_ haven’t-“

Harry smirked. “Oh no, they definitely haven’t worked it out yet.”

“I don’t know what you’re so smug about,” Ginny nudged him. “It took you an age to understand what I was getting at when I spoke to you about Al. You would have no idea if it weren’t for me.”

“That’s an exaggeration,” Harry said, offended.

“If they haven’t worked it out, they will soon. The way Scorpius behaved every time one of Albus’ letters arrived, he’s not exactly subtle.”

“I think so too,” Ginny nodded. “It’s only a matter of time.”

“I give them until Easter at the latest,” Draco said confidently.

Ginny scoffed. “Sooner, I give them until Valentine’s day.”

Harry shook his head. “You’re both mad. Al is  _my_  son, it won’t be until at least their sixth year.”

“But Scorpius is  _my_  son,” Draco said importantly. “It’ll be this year.”

“I know Albus, it won’t be this year.”

“You didn’t see them at the station on the first day back,” Draco muttered.

“But isn’t Scorpius taking Rose to Hogsmeade?”

Draco frowned. “He didn’t say anything about that.”

Harry couldn’t help but smirk. “I’m very sure it won’t be this year.”

“I’m very sure you’re wrong, Potter.”

“We’ll just see about that, Malfoy.”

Ginny made a noise of loud exasperation and threw her napkin into the air, standing up. “I swore I wouldn’t put up with any more squabbling after Albus turned ten.” She left the table.

Harry looked at Draco sheepishly then he glanced at the direction Ginny had left in. “Care to make it interesting?”

Draco raised one eyebrow. “How so?”

“Twenty galleons.”

Draco recoiled slightly. “ _Betting_  on our  _children_?” He leaned back forward. “Fifty.”

“Done.” Harry shook his hand.

* * *

_Wednesday 20th April, 2022  
_ Scorpius' POV

The Albus Laws

Scorpius fondly glanced over at where Albus was lying in the grass on his back with a Transfiguration textbook balanced over his face and his hands in his lap. He breathed evenly and the pages fluttered slightly.

“Remember when we promised our parents that us spending time together over Easter wouldn’t interfere with OWL revision?” Scorpius said loudly.

Albus made a noise of complaint. “I’m revising! Ask me anything!” His voice was muffled from beneath the textbook.

“Okay, what is the third principal exception to Gamp’s elemental law of Transfiguration,” Scorpius challenged.

There was a pause and then Albus sat up, pushing the book from his face and frowning at Scorpius. “Is that the one about not being able to conjure food into existence?”

“Incorrect, that’s Gamp’s first principal exception.”

“One of the exceptions,” Albus waved a hand casually and sat up next to Scorpius. “How come this Gamp gets to make his own laws anyway? I’m going to make a set of laws, the Albus Laws.”

Scorpius snorted. “What are the Albus Laws?”

Albus thought for a second. “Albus’ first law: all life things will not start until at least midday so we can all get enough sleep. Albus’ second law: exams are not allowed to exist, neither is revision. Albus’ third law: Scorpius Malfoy has to kiss me right now.”

He laughed. “The third law is oddly specific, might be difficult for most people to follow as you’re the only one here  _right now_.”

“It’s a law, Scorpius.” Albus raised his eyebrows in mock offence. Scorpius grinned and leaned over to kiss him. Albus’ expression was soft. “Are you okay?”

Scorpius didn’t say anything and played with some blades of grass, running his fingers through them. “Yeah. You know what it’s like.”

Albus nodded. “I know. I used to go straight to bed after my therapy sessions, it was easier to think everything through. Are you sure you want to revise?”

“Very sure,” Scorpius insisted. “We focus more on clearing my mind of unwanted thoughts so the busier I am, the better. It makes it easier.”

“You’re having unwanted thoughts?” Albus asked in concern.

“Not that I’m thinking about bad things,” Scorpius assured him hurriedly. “But all thoughts are unwanted when you’re trying for a clear mind. It’s what I do when I’m feeling anxious.”

“How do you clear them?”

“You let them exist but instead of dwelling on them you just… let them float past.” Scorpius waved his hand to indicate a thought floating past. “You recognise they exist, but don’t let them take over.”

“You tell him, Scorp.” A voice interrupted their conversation and Lily strolled on over, placing herself down in between Albus and Scorpius and looking like she’d just woken up from the most relaxing dream. Her face was so calm and peaceful, her eyes were drifting shut, but her back was straight and her legs crossed beneath her. “Hi.”

“Hello, Lily,” Scorpius greeted kindly.

“I thought you were at Luna’s?” Albus said, stretching his legs out in front of him.

“I was,” Lily said softly. “But now I’m back.” She sighed dreamily.

“Explains why you’re all… Luna-y,” Albus surveyed her.

Lily was wearing pale pink and grey sportswear and her long, red hair was tied into a bun with a string of rosebuds threaded around it. She brought with her an interesting but pleasant scent, sort of earthy and flowery all at the same time.

“Your conversation sounded interesting,” Lily commented, ignoring Albus’ words. “What were you talking about?”

Albus glanced at Scorpius hurriedly. “Er, Scorpius read this book about-“

“It’s okay,” Scorpius interrupted shooting Albus a reassuring look. “We were talking about something my therapist has been teaching me.”

Lily reacted to the idea of Scorpius seeing a therapist the same way she might have reacted to him telling her he’d bought an ice cream that morning. “It sounded like yoga.”

“It’s not yoga, it’s a technique to recognise but not acknowledge your thoughts.”

Lily nodded. “That’s what I do when I practise yoga, Luna taught me. You tune everything out until the only thing left to focus on is your breath and your body. Then you can assign movements to your breath. It’s very calming. Have you ever tried?”

Scorpius shook his head.

Lily’s dreamy expression sharpened slightly and her bright eyes snapped over to Scorpius. “Oh please can I teach you some? Please, oh please, Scorpius! You might find it really helpful! Please!”

By the end of this monologue, she was holding onto his forearm in excitement.

Albus frowned at his sister. “Lil, Scorpius might not want to.”

“Can we just  _try_? Please?”

Scorpius couldn’t see a reason why he should say no to Lily. “I don’t have to be really flexible, do I?”

Lily shook her head. “Not at all! Albus has done it before, haven’t you?”

Albus reluctantly nodded. “Once or twice, and I was rubbish. But look, I can touch my toes now!” He reached forward and just skimmed his toes with his fingertips, looking very pleased with himself. “Quidditch helps.”

Lily smiled proudly. “Well done, Al.” She turned back to Scorpius. “So, what do you think, Scorp? I think you’ll like it! Al, you can come too. Don’t want to separate you lovebirds.”

And that was how, later that morning, Scorpius found himself sat on a blue yoga mat in the Potters’ garden behind Lily, who was on her own pink mat, and beside Albus whose mat was green. Albus had found a ladybird in the grass and was watching it run over his palm in fascination.

Lily cleared her throat. “First, we’re going to sit with our feet together and start to tune into our breathing.”

Albus pretended to concentrate hard for a second. “Yep, not dead, I’m breathing.”

Lily gave him a withering look. “Notice the way it feels as your lungs fill and your chest expands. Feel the breath leave you.”

Following Lily’s words, Scorpius fell into a pleasant rhythm of deep breathing. His eyes drifted shut and he enjoyed the relaxing feeling of sitting here breathing deeply as Lily’s soothing voice washed over him. She talked them through something called a three part breath, which they did together for a bit. Scorpius glanced across at Albus to see him looking just as peaceful as Scorpius felt, his eyes closed and his expression relaxed.

“Let’s just do this and then the lying down part,” Albus sighed into the quiet.

Lily ignored him. “Now we can attach some movements to our breathing. Keep the same rhythm, and just start to gently move into a table top position. From there, move forward, tuck your toes and come into wand position.”

Somehow, Lily had fluidly gone through a series of motions and ended up in a different pose entirely. Scorpius stared at her in confusion, still in the table top position. Beside him, Albus messily manoeuvred himself to copy Lily; Scorpius hastily did the same.

“Hold your wand,” Lily said and it took Scorpius a second to remember the pose was called  _wand_  and he didn’t need to actually draw his wand for this. “Lower slowly to the mat and push up into a basilisk.”

“Shouldn’t we ask it first?” Albus snorted at his own joke, in an approximation of what Lily was doing.

Scorpius had never been more aware of just how much limb he seemed to own as he copied Lily’s movements. He was upside down in what she called a downward crup and through his own legs he could see Albus trying to scratch his nose with his own shoulder.

“Step or float your feet to your hands,” Lily commanded casually.

“My what to my where?” Albus was incredulous, his voice muffled from where he was still upside down.

“Your  _feet_  to your  _hands_ ,” Lily repeated, “so you can stand up.”

“Well just say that then,” Albus sighed.

Scorpius was feeling incredibly relaxed and was thoroughly enjoying himself, which was more than could be said for Albus, who was clearly bored of the whole thing already.

When he asked Lily for a third time when they could do the  _lying down relaxing part_ , she huffed and grabbed Scorpius’ hand and started pulling him away. “Come on, Scorp. Let’s finish this on our own.”

“No, I’m sorry, I’ll be good!” Albus chuckled and Lily gave in.

True to his word, he didn’t say anything else until Lily had finished and told them both to lie on their backs.

“This is the best bit,” Albus said gleefully.

Fifteen minutes later and feeling more relaxed than he could ever remember being, Scorpius was quick to ask Lily when they could do it again. She was ecstatic that he’d liked it and promised they could do it as often as he wanted. It turned into a daily thing, every morning for the rest of Scorpius’ stay at the Potters’ - early, so well before Albus was awake. But Scorpius grew to love coming back from the garden feeling all relaxed and wholesome to climb into bed beside his boyfriend and cuddle him until he woke up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, it's such a throwback to be uploading to this fic again! I am so unbelievably excited for the sequel, can't wait to share it with you all! Check back on Monday for chapter 1, in the meantime you can subscribe to my author page for email updates :)  
> I'm on tumblr @littlerose13writes  
> Love youuuuu

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Sweeter than Fiction [podfic]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17503451) by [LittleRose13](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleRose13/pseuds/LittleRose13), [thepistolrecords (thepistolgirl)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thepistolgirl/pseuds/thepistolrecords)




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